


The Fallen

by YearOfTheRooster



Category: Kung Fu Panda (Movies), Kung Fu Panda: Legends of Awesomeness (Cartoon)
Genre: Abuse, Anxiety, Blood and Gore, Chinese Culture, Complicated Relationships, Dark, Depression, Drugs, F/M, Gods, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, Japanese Culture, Martial Arts, Politics, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Rape, Suicide, Torture
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-05
Updated: 2021-03-14
Packaged: 2021-03-15 17:02:52
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 9
Words: 49,867
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28567422
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/YearOfTheRooster/pseuds/YearOfTheRooster
Summary: A story about a god fallen from grace and forced to trudge through the unfortunate life of Kairos Sao without any memories. Rated M for lemons, drug use, depictions of violence/gore/torture/rape/death, strong language, adult themes, dark concepts, mental health talk, suicide.
Relationships: Po & Tigress (Kung Fu Panda)
Comments: 1
Kudos: 2





	1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimers**

**I do not own the Kung Fu Panda franchise**

**I reference many cultures, languages, beliefs, etc that I know very little about so please forgive inaccuracies.**

**For those of you who read my other fan fic Scars, do not be confused by the existence of Tzu Lin, this is a different universe where events played out normally up until the point this story starts.**

**This story contains strong language, adult themes, gore, and drug use.**

**Note: I’m not sure if this really counts as a KFP story. I’d say it’s more of an OC story that takes place in the KFP universe and has frequent use of KFP characters. This story also takes place 1 year after KFP3. Also the main character, Kairos, is heavily inspired by Yujiro Hanma from Baki, so if you notice similarities, that is why. Enjoy.**

  
  


**Prologue**

In an infinite void, a small spark appeared. The spark grew more and more unstable until it exploded leaving a being where it was. This being was The Great One, the first being to exist. It existed before time and will exist after.

The Great One, born of The Spark of Life, knew only to create the first universe. 

In this universe were six beings, each imparted with a god-soul. These beings were created to bring life and balance to the universe. Kairos, the God of Entropy. Seeth, the God of Eternity, Iirkan, the God of Chaos. Mynr, the God of Order. Enkii, the God of Creation. Faokon, the God of Destruction.

Each god balanced one other god. Entropy and Eternity, Chaos and Order, Creation and Destruction.

The Gods all existed in peace, the light gods (Eternity, Creation, Order) creating cycles and the dark gods (Entropy, Chaos, Destruction) ending them to start anew.

Eventually, the gods created the Satiens, primordial beings that command and guide time, destiny, life, and souls. The Satiens and the gods formed The Divine Republic, and the gods commanded the Satiens to create souls, the foundation for life as well as an infinite residence for the souls to exist in. 

Each soul was unique and flawed. This allowed for the idea of relationships to be formed as certain souls were drawn to others based on these unique characteristics. In the modern era the term “soul-mate” is quite literal, being that those two people’s souls had become romantically involved long before they had ever lived. The gods shared this same characteristic leading to a romance forming between Kairos and Enkii and other relationships among The Divine Republic.

After the creation of souls, the light gods made what could be described as an algorithm to create physical lifeforms for each of these souls to reside in. These bodies were modeled off of the appearance of the gods who walked on two legs and stood upright.

Eventually the universe as we know it had been formed, brimming with planets and solar systems, and two of the gods, Seeth and Mynr, had grown quite fond of this universe.

Soon, the pair grew spiteful of the dark gods as they were tasked with refreshing the cycle thus destroying this version of the universe to start anew.

Seeth, being the co-leader of The Divine Republic and the second most powerful god, commanded the dark gods to cease destroying what they had created. This was, of course, met with a no, so Seeth decided to seek audience with The Great One, asking it to end the existence of the dark gods. The Great One, ever the pacifist, refused and told Seeth that they were necessary for the balance of the universe.

Angry, Seeth organized an expedition into The Astral Frontier, the infinite plain where all universes reside, to seek out The Spark of Life. When they found it, they ran experiments on it until they figured out that they could use it to give them temporary omnipotence. Seeth used this omnipotence to condemn Kairos and his lover to a runt planet called Earth where they would eventually die and fall into oblivion without their god-souls.

In his spite, Seeth had sent Kairos to an abusive father and Enkii to a tiger clan. Both of them to be subjected to terrible lives.

Iirkan had a different plan though. He sent their two god-souls to hibernate deep within the Earth’s core with the hope that they would one day rediscover them and take back their spots in The Divine Republic.

The Great One also had a different plan for the two fallen gods. When Seeth had condemned them, The Great One had implanted a small portion of their god-souls inside them and left the rest to fate.

**Chapter 1**

In the Lu Shi Village, a bear couple was expecting a child.

“Quick! Quick!” Sao yelled urgently to the doctors as he burst into the medical hut, “My wife is about to give birth!”

The doctors jumped into action immediately, guiding the female bear to the delivery bay. Sao knelt next to her, holding her paw.

“Come on Mei, you can make it through this!” he said as she wailed in pain, blood pouring from between her legs.

A snout began to show as Mei wailed again, squeezing her mates paw.

Soon the whole head had appeared, the doctors prompting her to push.

After two grueling hours the screaming child had finally been born immediately being wrapped in a blanket and brought to Mei. Breathing heavily, she cradled her child in her free arm, the other still holding Sao’s paw, sighing weakly. She turned her head to her husband and he smiled at her. She smiled in turn before her eyes glazed over and her arm went limp. The smile was wiped from Sao’s face and replaced with a look of shock.

“Mei. Mei!” he yelled in a panic as he held his dead wife’s paw. Tears began streaming down his face when the realization hit him.

*Two years later*

Sao had grown resentful of his child, irrationally blaming him for the untimely death of his beloved. He only allowed his son to survive, giving him just enough food and water while spending the rest of his budget on booze and at brothels. His son slept on a blanket on the ground and he didn’t even call his son by his name, Kairos. Instead opting to call him boy, or kid.

He had also formed a habit of beating Kairos for anything he deemed bad. This ranged from breaking something valuable to entering his room unannounced.

The beatings only got worse and more frequent over the years, his father’s justification for it being that his son was “growing stronger” and therefore needed “fairer punishments”. Multiple times, Kairos had had to walk himself to the medical hut because of how brutal his father’s punishments got. After every beating his father would squat down and put his hand on his son’s shoulder, and in a sympathetic tone say

“You see kid, daddy wouldn’t beat you if you stopped disobeying him and doing things he doesn’t like.”

These words echoed in his head for his entire childhood, bringing him to obsessively try and get into his father’s good graces, but it was never enough.

One night, after a particularly terrible beating, Kairos had begun his walk to the medical hut. The injuries he sustained including a broken arm and a deep, vertical cut across his left eyelid. When he arrived at the hut, the doctor let out a sad sigh, immediately recognizing his regular patient. The doctor greeted him then smiled and patched the child up.

“So what happened this time?” he asked Kairos.

“I uhh fell off my uhh roof while I was playing.” Kairos said, unconvincingly.

The doctor eyed him suspiciously as he equipped him with a bamboo splint for his arm.

“You fell off the roof huh.” he said, unconvinced as he looked at the cut across his eye.

“You know you can tell me.” his tone was suddenly concerned.

“I already told you, I fell off the roof.” Kairos responded, not making eye contact.

The doctor let out another sigh as he stood Kairos up.

“Ok… Well, you had better get moving along kiddo, it’s not safe for you at night.” he said, smiling. 

Kairos hurried out with the doctor watching him leave, his smile replaced with sadness.

When Kairos arrived back at his house, he was met with a horrifying sight. His father was flat on his back, completely motionless, with vomit slowly streaming down the sides of his mouth. There was a bottle of rice wine in one of his hands.

Kairos ran over to his dad’s corpse in shock. He sat next to his father for a time staring blankly at his dead father unsure how to feel.

Eventually Kairos stood up and walked out of his house. He began wandering the village, completely aimless until he stumbled across a small building with a tapestry above the door.

“Martial Arts Academy” was all it said. Something told Kairos to knock, so he did.

A few seconds later a tall, young wolf came to the door holding a dagger.

“WHO IS IT?!?!” he demanded as he threw the door open. His gaze softening as he saw who it was.

“What do you need, kid?” he asked impatiently, lowering his dagger.

“Can I join your academy?” Kairos asked.

“Kid,” he said shaking his head at the stupid request,” you come banging on my door at ungodly hours of the night a-” he stopped as he noticed the splint.

He sighed

“Okay, where’s your mom?” he asked.

“She’s dead, she died right after I was born.” Kairos responded blankly.

The wolf’s face softened more.

“W-where’s your dad then?” the wolf asked, growing worried.

“He’s dead too, I found him dead earlier tonight…” he responded, a little sadder.

The wolf sighed again and directed the child into the academy.

The inside was dark and smelled a bit dank as if the wood it was made out of had begun to rot. There was a soft mat covering the whole floor of the main room, in each of the corners were punching dummies and assorted weaponry.

“What’s your name?” the wolf asked.

“Kai.” he responded, preferring the nickname he had given himself.

“How old are you Kai?”

“Five.” Kai responded.

“My name’s Zhikan.” he said as his face grew more sympathetic. Zhikan grabbed a blanket and pointed towards the mat.

“This is your bed, kid.” he said as he walked towards his room.

Zhikan laid in his bed thoughts running through his head.

_Fuck, only five. Poor kid…_

_What was with all those injuries…_

_How the fuck am I gonna take care of this kid, I barely make enough to take care of myself…_

_Did he say he found his dad’s dead body…_

Meanwhile Kai began to get comfortable on the mat. Compared to his usual sleep situation, the soft mat was luxurious and he fell asleep quickly, feeling lucky to have found such a sympathetic host.

The next morning Kai woke to Zhikan poking his arm.

“Wake up, kid.” 

Kai sat up and rubbed his right eye, unable to rub the left due to the cut. 

“What is it?” Kai asked sleepily.

“We're gonna lay down some ground rules if you're going to stay here alright.” Zhikan stated.

“Ok.” Kai responded, listening.

“Ok number one, you will be cleaning the mats after each of my classes, number two, you may not go into my room without permission, and number three, you must train here and train hard. Understand?”

“Yes sir.” Kai responded enthusiastically.

Zhikan smiled.

“Oh, I almost forgot. Here you go.” he produced a bowl of steamed vegetables.

Kai took the bowl gratefully and began wolfing down the vegetables not having had a meal of substance in months. The wolf stood up and walked off the mat towards a small kitchen that Kai hadn’t noticed before. Kai finished eating and set his bowl into the sink.

Kai couldn’t help but feel a bit ecstatic as he thought about his future here.

“What martial art do you do here.” Kai asked.

“Ehh, I’ve taken elements of multiple and formed them into, probably, the most efficient fighting style in China.” he said proudly.

“Huh…” Kai breathed surprised by the wolf’s confidence, “So when can I start?”

Zhikan chuckled, “You aren’t gonna be starting for a while buddy.” he gestured at Kai’s arm which, now in the light, was obviously broken.

Kai sighed.

“You can watch my first class if you want to see what you're gonna be doing.” Zhikan offered.

“Sounds good.” the bear responded.

The six o’clock bell rang and the first wave of students began trickling in. When the class had started thirty minutes later there were only eight students. Zhikan entered and everybody bowed. Zhikan returned the bow before addressing the class.

“Today we will start off with thirty minutes of conditioning. Get to it.” he commanded

The whole class groaned as they began jogging around the large mat.

“Inside!” Zhikan yelled after five minutes.

All the students began to skip sideways facing the inside of the circle they were making.

As soon as they did Zhikan yelled, “Sprawl!”

All the students suddenly dropped their hips to the ground, then did ten push-ups before getting back up and skipping more, Zhikan yelling sprawl every minute or so for ten minutes.

“Alright everyone to the end of the mat. Shrimps, shoulder walks, front-rolls, back-rolls, and inverts.” he yelled

Everyone went to the other end of the mat and started. The movements they called “shrimps” were basically just them laying on their sides, pushing with their legs until they reached the other end of the mat. Shoulder walks were them laying on their backs and arching until only their feet and upper back touched the ground, then walking with their shoulders to the other end. Front-rolls were just somersaults that they did on either shoulder from standing. Back-rolls were the same, just backwards. Inverts started from a sitting position, rolling sideways over ones shoulders and neck.

After they finished the conditioning Zhikan yelled, “Alright, everyone get some water and do stretches for Judo tosses. You have five minutes!”

Zhikan walked over to his room while all the students began talking and grabbing water out of skins they had brought with them.

When Zhikan had returned all the students gathered around him in a circle.

“Most of you are already familiar with the o-goshi, correct?”

Some of the students nodded, but most just looked confused.

“Jin, come here.” he said pointing to another tall wolf, “O-goshi means ‘hip-toss’ in Japanese. Based off of the name, obviously you are going to be using your hips to throw your opponent. So, step one, grab his arm and drag him towards you, step two step your right foot across to his right foot as you hook under his arm, step three, step your left foot next to your right foot and lift your opponent onto your hips.”

The wolf then performed the move on his partner who hit the mat so hard that the whole building shook a bit.

The next hour of the class was spent drilling the o-goshi as well as a few other throws.

“Alright, partner up! We will be going for six five-minute rounds!” he yelled as he flipped an hourglass.

Everyone partnered up and began. The sparring was not grappling like Kai thought it would be. Instead it was a mix of both grappling and striking as the students moved at blistering speeds. After the six rounds were up Zhikan and his students bowed to each other before they stepped off the mat.

“Here kid.” the wolf tossed Kai a mop, “Hey DO NOT miss class tomorrow! We are going to be expanding on the o-goshi into side control!” he yelled as the students left.

Kai began mopping the mat now more even more excited to begin.

  
  


**Thank you for reading. I am cross-posting this here from FFN to hopefully get more feedback and attention.**

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  



	2. Chapter 2

**Please tell me what you enjoyed and what I can improve on.**

**Enjoy!**

  
  


**Chapter 2**

It had been 22 years since Kai had begun training with Zhikan. Kai had grown to be more than two meters tall and incredibly strong. Each muscle on his body was exaggerated and he stood with a slight forward hunch. His fur had filled in to be a deep brown that flowed along his body like water. Kai had turned out to be quite the prodigal student as well, becoming the best in the class in one year and only improving from there.

“Brother!” Zhinan yelled to Kai who was meditating in a weighted chair split, “Class starts in ten minutes! Today is Kung Fu!”

Zhikan hurried out the door towards the market as Kai set his weights down and exited his split, cracking his neck and knuckles before stepping on to the mat to stretch.

When the students arrived he greeted each one and got them started on conditioning.

“Today we are starting with thirty minutes of conditioning!” he yelled.

His voice had become a deep growl that commanded your attention and shook the room.

“Inside!”

“Sprawl!”

“High Knees!”

“Other end of the mat! Run through fit-ins for tomoe-nage then move into Kung Fu routines while you wait for Zhikan!”

Once Zhikan had returned he looked up at Kai who was now a head taller than him and thanked him for starting off the class.

“Alright today is Monday meaning we will be doing Kung Fu!” Zhikan barked.

For the next hour they ran through different Kung Fu drills and ideas, like usual. Then Zhikan did something unexpected when he told the class they were doing an hour-long sparring session vs the regular half-hour. His justification being that it was Kai’s 27th birthday.

Kai had forgotten that it was his birthday. His own forgetfulness amused him.

“You know me too well.” Kai said as a grin spread across his face. He pointed to Zhikan, “You’re mine.”

Zhikan flipped the hourglass, a grin across his face as well. The instant the sand began to fall, he seemingly teleported to Kai and they instantly started sparring. The other students in awe of the two warriors whose strikes sent deafening shockwaves through the air.

The warriors paused temporarily as they looked for an opening on the other. Kai blinked first which Zhikan capitalized on by sending a perfectly timed jab rocketing at Kai. It wasn’t fast enough however as Kai dodged and pulled his brother into an ippon seoi nage which shook the ground like an earthquake when Zhikan hit the ground. Kai moved into side control immediately, looking to pass into mount, but Zhikan bridged out and shrimped into full guard landing multiple strikes on his brothers head and neck. As soon as Kai began to pass Zhikan moved into a scissor sweep taking mount and securing an armbar. They continued like this every class until it was dark and they were both tired.

Business had increased exponentially for Zhikan as he and Kai demonstrated the effectiveness of his martial art in multiple bandit raids and gang brawls over the years.

As such Kai had his own room and bathroom at the other end of the mat room although he still opted to sleep on the mat sometimes just out of habit.

Kai cleaned up in the bath before him and Zhikan headed out to the local tavern to celebrate his birthday.

They found a table and Zhikan ordered them two pints of mead, a honey based alcohol.

After they finished the pints they left to go buy hemp from a nearby pharmacy.

On their way to the pharmacy they passed Kai’s old house. Kai paused as he looked at it. A wave of fear, anxiety, and seething rage overcame him. He clenched his fists to the point where his claws cut into his palms, causing them to bleed.

“Come on buddy.” Zhikan said softly, gently pulling him away from the house.

The rest of the night was hard for Kai, as images of his childhood abuse flashed through his mind. Zhikan looked a bit concerned, but he knew what was going on. He had seen his fair share of Kai’s internal, emotional conflicts rooted in his troubling childhood. Not only that, but Kai was a relatively non-emotional person, so when they boiled over it was easy to tell.

When they got back home, Zhikan began breaking apart the hemp buds they bought and packing into the end of a pipe. He lit one end of a twig in the fire of a lantern next to him as he thought about a new term spreading. PTSD, post traumatic stress disorder. A few of the imperial army soldiers had told him about it. It was far from a diagnosable condition yet, but apparently they had seen symptoms concurrent across thousands of soldiers after going home from a violent war. It explains the random fits of anxiety or panic that people like Kai have. 

He took the end of the stick out of the lantern and began to light the hemp inside the pipe. Blowing the white smoke into Kai’s face to get his attention, he handed the pipe and stick over to Kai who did the exact same thing hoping to calm some of his anxiety with the “magical” effects of the plant.

“I’m beat.” Zhikan yawned as he went to his room to sleep.

The effects of the hemp hitting Kai, he walked to his room, flopped onto his bed then fell asleep in record time.

Suddenly he woke up inside his old house. It was completely dark except for a deep crimson glow coming from the ceiling. He felt nauseous as a sickly sweet smell arose around him. There was a constant wind that blew straight through him, freezing his insides. His heart started racing as a tall figure moved towards him. The figure stepped into the crimson glow. His father stood before him, his eyes glazed over and a rice wine bottle in his hand. Twenty-two years of repressed fear hit him like a ton of bricks as he began retreating towards the wall behind him. His dad suddenly pounced then Kai woke up. A cold sweat staining his bed as he sat up. He ran to the bathroom and vomited out the whole pint of mead. A shiver ran up his spine anytime he thought of the image of his dad standing before him in the crimson glow.

He couldn’t sleep after that nightmare so he decided to meditate in a weighted chair split until morning.

“I heard you throw up last night” Zhikan chuckled.

Kai was comforted by the voice of his lifelong brother and mentor and he chuckled in return.

“Yup, I should’ve known chugging a whole pint of mead without having eaten anything wouldn’t turn out well.” he sighed, “I think I’m gonna go out and hit the trees for a bit before we start class.”

“Go for it.” Zhikan replied.

Kai walked to the forest near the academy, deep in thought. Hitting the oak trees outside the academy was something Kai did to relieve anger and stress whenever he had to. He reached the forest, the enormous oaks a familiar sight. He normally only hit the trees hard enough to crack them, but this time he felled every tree he hit in one strike, each one splintering and letting out a cracking sound that could be heard from hundreds of meters away. Each tree he hit was his dad’s face in his mind, making it hugely satisfying each time he decimated one of them. He must’ve destroyed fifty trees before he went back. When he got back inside Zhikan was waiting for him with an excited look.

“What?” Kai asked, a bit confused.

Zhikan produced a scroll from behind his back.

“Look what a Jade Palace messenger just dropped off here!” Zhikan said excitedly.

Kai opened the scroll and read it.

_ Dear, Kairos Sao _

_ The Jade Palace is hosting a tournament of all the greatest warriors throughout the world. You have been selected to participate for your commendable fighting skills and unparalleled bravery. You and nineteen other fighters from across the world will compete in a bracket style tournament for two million Yuan and a chance to live and train at The Jade Palace among the Furious Five and Dragon Warrior. There will be a transport caravan waiting in your village soon. Failure to participate for any reason will result in great dishonor upon you and your village. _

_ -The Jade Palace _

“Are you sure you want me to do this?” Kairos asked.

“It’s not really like you have a choice, and besides I would be ecstatic to see my brother whoop some ass with the martial arts I taught him.” Zhikan said excitedly.

There was a knocking on the door.

“Kairos Sao, your transport caravan has arrived.” someone said from behind the door.

Kai gave his surrogate brother a hug and left feeling the same excitement as he felt after he watched his first class at the academy. 

He boarded the vessel of his destiny as he thought about the possibilities to come.

  
  
  
  
**Sorry for the sudden tonal shift and hasty writing. I was a bit crunched on time while writing this chapter :)**

  
  
  
  
  
  
  



	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

  
  


The caravan only made one other stop in the entirety of North Eastern China, and that was in the Kirpon Confederacy, a largely Chinese nation that the last of the tiger race made residence. The tigers were an incredibly sophisticated people. Their architecture felt futuristic and their cities were clean and organized. All of the tigers he had met had been extremely kind, smart pacifists to the point where many of them even refused to eat the flesh of feral animals. These reasons made it a huge surprise when they stopped and picked up a tigress. She was maybe 1.7 meters tall and she was dressed in a beautiful black robe.

As soon as she sat on the floor of the wagon they made eye contact. She had gorgeous hazel eyes that pierced through him. He had to admit, he had some carnal attraction to her based off of her appearance, but there was something else. It felt like she was a close friend or someone she had known for a long time. She clearly had the same feelings about him as they continued to stare at each other.

“Do I know you?” They asked at the same time.

Suddenly out of the trance and blushing heavily she quickly leaned back and introduced herself

“I-I am Enkii Ulta” she said nervously, not making eye contact.

Enkii, that name sounded so familiar to Kai, and her voice was a soothing melody to his ears.

“I am Kairos Sao.” he said his full name as a formal show of respect to his fellow competitor.

His name had clearly had the same effect on Enkii as hers did on him. She was also wooed by his dark chocolate growl of a voice, and almost began purring at the thought, but stopped herself as she saw him looking at her.

“Uhh… pleased to make your acquaintance Kairos.” she said, her heart slamming into her ribs. What was it about this guy that provoked this reaction in her. She had never felt any sort of attraction to any male before, let alone from a different species.

“Pleased to make yours as well.” he said mildly amused by the reaction he had obviously caused her.

“What martial art do you do.” she asked, her heart still pounding.

“Uhh… well, the uhh art that I study doesn’t actually have… a name.” he responded awkwardly. “Sorry, I don’t give much heed to small talk, I see it as a waste of my time.” he said as the tension in the room rose.

“Neither do I, but I always feel like it’s better than sitting in uncomfortable silence…” she reasoned, also uncomfortable.

_ Stop it!  _ She thought, hoping it would make her heart stop pounding.

“Yeah, but, as you can see, despite it being an effort to break the awkwardness in this wagon it only served to increase the awkwardness, thus needlessly wasting your time.” he shot back as if he had rehearsed this line multiple times.

Enkii couldn’t argue against that. Especially not with the way she currently felt, and the way he spoke, the sound of his voice, the logic of his mind. It all melted her inside and she began purring quietly.

“Um, hello.” he sighed, “Hey!”

She was knocked out of her trance.

“Yes?” she responded quickly.

“You were just staring at me and purring.” he said with a slight smirk, causing her to blush harder. “Aaaanyways, how did the sophisticated, pacifist tiger society produce a warrior fierce enough to participate in this tournament?” he said, quickly changing the topic, beginning to blush himself.

The question instantly changed her look of embarrassment to one more solemn.

“Well I wasn’t born in the Kirpon Confederacy. I was born into the Ulta Fide Clan on the India/China border, hence why my last name is Ulta. You see the Ulta Fide Clan was not a sophisticated society, I might even go as far as to say that it bordered on primitive. The government was based on a social hierarchy that revolved around how powerful you were in head to head combat.” she said as her voice grew sad. “I was quite the prodigy among my people, being the only female to win the Li Jo Tournament, a tournament that determined how much power your family had in the society.” 

She wiped a tear away from her eye.

“Your saying ‘was’ a lot. Why? What happened to your clan?” he asked this with caution, trying not to overstep boundaries with this near stranger.

“Well my people, ever the warmongers, waged war on a neighboring city, Ip Kong. Of cour-” she was cut off by Kai.

“Your clan declared war on the CAPITOL CITY Ip Kong where the emperor lives?!?!” he choked. He wanted to laugh at their stupidity, but refrained knowing it would hurt the tigress’s feelings.

“Sadly yes.” she sighed. “I fled to Kirpon before the imperial army wiped my clan off the map. I tried to get my family to leave as well, but... they were just as stubborn and war hungry as those who stupidly attacked Ip Kong.” her voice grew sad, “What about you?” she asked, shifting the focus from her sad past.

A deep, long sigh escaped his lungs.

_ I’m about to share my backstory with a total stranger! What am I doing!? _ He thought before saying

“Well... I was born in the Lu Shi Village a few hundred kilometers northwest of here. It’s a small village that mainly subsists off the crops it grows and the fish it catches. By my mom and dad were government workers, although what SPECIFICALLY they did I never knew. My mother died immediately after my birth due to blood loss…” he trailed off at the thought, “My father was distraught after her death and soon began to resent me, blaming me for her death. He fed me only enough to survive and beat me to the point where I had to walk myself to the medic hut I was born in. That continued for the first five years of my life until one night when I arrived back from the medic hut I found him dead. He choked to death on his own vomit after over drinking. After he died, I was totally lost and I just wandered around my village until I came across a martial arts academy, the owner allowing me to live with him, and that’s where I’ve been for the last twenty-two years.” he shook his head, realizing the amount he had said to this stranger.

_ Only Zhikan knows any of that shit!!! _ Kai scolded himself mentally

She stared at him in shock.

“I… I’m so sorry…” she said, looking at the ground pensively. She looked shocked at the amount he was willing to share and how sad all that he did share was.

“Nahh… it’s… fine” he lied. 

They sat there for the next hour in silence, neither knowing what to say. Anxiety began to grow in Kai as his childhood memories crept back into his mind. The silence only serving to make him feel more isolated.

Soon, the isolation would disappear as neither of them could take the crushing, awkward silence any longer.

“Why do I feel like I’ve known you forever!?” they blurted simultaneously.

They looked at each other surprised before they burst out laughing, killing all of the tension in the room. 

Kai instantly felt relieved, it felt so good to truly laugh at something, it felt as though the weight had been lifted off of his shoulders. To his surprise, the sounds of the tigress across from him laughing brought him a great joy, a feeling he was completely unfamiliar with.

Their moods now lifted, they sat there and talked happily, sharing stories and laughing. By the time night had fallen, the pair felt a distinct closeness to the other. For some reason, they just clicked perfectly as if they were custom designed for each other.

Kai was shocked by this, as the only other person he felt this close to was Zhikan who he had known for over two decades. He only knew this feline for a day and he already felt like a close friend.

“Were done moving for the night, you guys have your choice of either sleeping in here or on the ground outside.” the ox who pulled the carriage said gruffly as he walked to the tent he had pitched.

The wagon would have sufficed for ten people, let alone two. Kai and Enkii looked at each other and shrugged. It was much better than sleeping on the freezing winter ground for sure.

They both went to opposite sides of the wagon and fell asleep.

The wagon got cold at night, so cold to the point that the breath of those inside was visible. This made it a huge surprise to Enkii when she woke up and felt warm. She cuddled closer to the source of warmth she found, her eyes still closed. She opened her eyes as she heard walking outside. It was then that she noticed the “warmth” she had found was actually Kai to whom she was clinging, her face buried in his chest, and, much to her chagrin, he was staring at her, wide awake with a look that said  _ what the hell are you doing.  _ She went flying back to the other side, her face dark red. The two meter behemoth stood up and stretched while popping all his joints. He looked at her for a second and then started laughing, making her face a darker red.

“Someone get cold?” he teased before he sat back down.

“Y-yeah I guess.” she was too embarrassed to think of anything else to say as a nervous laugh exited her lips.

“Foods on if you’re hungry.” the driving ox said from behind the wagon, making the pair jump a little.

The pair got up and exited the wagon, only to be greeted by a wind that froze them to the core. 

“Come on let’s hurry over to the fire before you freeze to death.” Kai laughed as he noticed Enkii hugging herself and shivering.

She nodded and walked towards the fire where a thick, dark stew was being cooked. The ox’s tent was pitched perfectly so that it was blocking most of the wind. The warmth of the fire was inviting and the stew smelled delicious.

“What are you cooking?” Kai asked, curious.

“I’m cooking an energy-packed beef stew with carrots, potatoes, leek, cloves, and garlic.” the ox said, a bit of pride in his voice.

Kai had a certain look on his face, “Um you said beef stew? Isn’t that *ahem* you know-uhh cannibalism?”

The ox looked offended at his question, “For it to be cannibalism, you would have to equate me to the feral beast I slayed this morning. I can assure you that I am nothing like that beast.” he said matter-of-factly.

“Okaaay” Kai responded.

The ox handed them both a bowl full of stew. The instant Kai received his bowl he was seduced by the smell being emitted from it. After eating a diet of steamed vegetables and raw salmon for the better part of his life, the smell of food that was made for flavor was intoxicating. He quickly began eating. As soon as he finished his bowl, his body felt warm, like his stomach was radiating heat to his whole body.

Once Enkii had finished eating the ox took down his tent and broke down his single-person campsite. Kai hopped back into the wagon with his new friend and they began talking again. The ox started pulling the wagon until it was night again.

“Same as last night, you guys have your choice of where to sleep.” said the ox.

“We’ll sleep here. I hope you don’t mind me asking, but what is your name?” Kai responded.

“My name is Ain Jao.” the ox stated.

“Pleased to meet you.” Kai said.

Ain huffed and gave him a little nod before heading over to his tent.

Kai and Enkii went to opposite sides of the wagon again and quickly fell asleep.

Kai suddenly woke up in his old house again. The house was still only lit by a crimson glow. He was filled with anxiety when he noticed his father standing above him. The same sickly sweet smell emanated from his dad’s whole being. He spoke a multitude of incoherent sentences before stepping onto Kai’s throat until he suffocated, throwing Kai out of his nightmare. 

His eyes flew open, his heart racing. His head was spinning and he felt like he needed to throw up. He tried to get up, but there was something holding him. He panicked, thinking he was still in his nightmare until he looked to his right to see Enkii clinging to him again and purring softly, sound asleep. He gently removed her arms from his body as he stood up and stumbled to the opening at the back of the wagon. 

He made it to the forest before a huge volume of thick, burning vomit came rocketing out of his throat, stinging the inside of his nose.

The cold sweat all over his fur had frozen as he leaned against a tree, unable to tell if he was shivering from the cold or from the fear.

He punched the tree he was leaning on in rage causing it to split in half vertically. He gurgled some water before heading back to the wagon.

Enkii was no longer purring when he got back inside. He looked at her and noticed that she was awake and looking back at him.

“Are you ok?” she muttered sleepily. There was a hint of concern in her voice.

“Yeah, I’m fine. You should get some rest.” he said softly as he laid back down.

As soon as he closed his eyes he felt Enkii’s arms back around him and she was purring quietly. He opened his eyes and looked at her peaceful face. For some reason the peacefulness of her face calmed him down. He tried to move her away, but she only hugged him tighter.

_ Fuck it  _ he thought as he sighed and put his arm around her, pulling her close. He fell into a deep dreamless sleep.

Enkii awoke the next morning to find herself cuddling up to the bear next to her. He was still asleep. She tried to move away, but found his arm around her, holding her close.

She smiled and looked at his face before hugging closer to him. She couldn’t explain the feeling she was experiencing. She had only known him for three days now, yet she felt like they had spent an eternity together. Despite her thoughts she pulled him only closer, enjoying the feeling of his fur on her face as she was lulled back into a light sleep.

They were both awoken by the sound of frantic speaking outside.

“The pass is snowed in ahead of you.” an unknown voice stated outside.

“How long will it delay us?” Ain asked

“At least four days if you push through it. Six days if you wait for the clearing crews.” the unknown voice said.

Ain sighed, “Send word to The Jade Palace. Tell them that our arrival will be delayed due to the snow.”

“On it.”

They heard the sounds of flapping wings before Ain came around the back.

“Breakfast is on if you’re hungry.” he said, deep in thought.

Kai looked at the feline he was holding, she was looking back giggling. It was Kai’s turn to be embarrassed as a blush came about his face.

“H-hey” he said awkwardly.

“Hey” Enkii responded before hugging him tightly.

Kai, a bit shocked from the sudden affection, soon wrapped his arms around her as well. He couldn’t help but be amused by the phenomenon that the last three days had been.

They released their embrace, and she looked up at him shyly, blushing.

They got out of the wagon and walked over to the fire where Ain was reheating the beef stew.

He gave each of them a bowl.

“So what are we gonna do?” Kai asked apprehensively.

“We are going to push through. We can absolutely NOT be late to the tournament.” the ox replied.

Kai nodded his head in understanding, as the group fell into silence.

“Somebody really did a number on that tree, huh?” the ox said, breaking the silence.

“Y-yeah.” Kain replied as he stared at the enormous oak tree. It was split pretty clean in half and each half was leaning a bit, making a v shape with the other.

His anxiety came creeping back as he remembered the events of the previous night. He looked over at Enkii who was shivering. She met his gaze and her face became a little concerned as she met his eyes. It was as if she could see his thoughts through his eyes. She managed to shoot him a weak smile, which calmed Kai a bit.

“Anyways, we had better get moving. Apparently there is a large blizzard moving south.” Ain stated as he began breaking down the site.

The pair hopped back into the wagon as the ox began pulling the cart.

Kai sat down and looked at Enkii. He fumbled through his bag until he brought out a large pair of black pants and a black long sleeve shirt.

“Please look away.” he said as he began changing.

“Got it.” she looked away quickly.

Kai had his back to her, so she decided to sneak a peek. One hundred kilograms of lean muscle stood before her. She couldn’t look away as she looked him up and down, taking in his exaggerated features and how his fur flowed over them. His whole body conveyed a sense of raw strength and he stood with a slight forward hunch. The feeling it gave her was odd, she was both intimidated and attracted. She almost began purring when he turned around prompting her to quickly look away.

“Ok coast is clear.” Kai said.

She turned around, Kai’s chiseled features lost under his rather baggy clothes.

Suddenly they heard a resounding  _ shit  _ as the wagon stopped. Kai hopped out to see what went wrong, and was shocked by what he saw. Two tremendous mountains towered above him from either side the pass between them covered in snow.

“That fucking goose had said there was only half a meter of snow in the pass!” Ain said enraged as he saw Kai approaching. There was easily three meters of snow in the pass, locked in place by the two mountains around it.

“How long is the pass?” Kai asked as he looked at the dark clouds slowly approaching the pass.

“About two kilometers.” Ain responded.

An idea brewed in Kai’s head.

“Ain get into the wagon.” he said.

“Why?”

“I have an idea.”

The ox looked at him suspiciously before hopping into the wagon.

Kai moved underneath the wagon before straining as he lifted the whole six hundred kilograms onto his back. He heard a loud  _ BWAH  _ come from the passengers. He made his way up on top of the compacted snow before he began walking. Each step burned in his thighs and sunk his stepping leg into the deep snow. His face contorted in concentration as he trudged through the pass. After two hours he finally reached the end of the three meter snow as the rightmost mountain had curved away from the left mountain. He roughly set the wagon down and walked to the back breathing heavily.

Ain got out and was shocked to find the snow only about twenty centimeters deep as most of it had fallen to the valley below without the other mountain to trap it in. He looked at Kai and laughed in disbelief before moving to the front to continue pulling.

Kai got into the cart completely exhausted. Enkii looked at him.

“What was that?” she asked, a bit out of breath.

“*huff* I carried the *huff* wagon through the *huff* pass.” he said collapsing on the ground where he promptly fell asleep.

He woke up a few hours later to Enkii stroking his face gently, a look of happiness on her face. He looked the feline in her eyes, he couldn’t put his finger on what their relationship was. It was like an extremely close friendship, but there was more there, dare he say romance.

He pushed the thought away.

“How long was I out?”

“Only a few hours, Ain said we would be arriving at Gongmen City soon.” she responded tenderly.

“Gongmen? I thought we were going to the Valley of Peace.” he said, confused.

“We are, but the regular path is too dangerous to go on this time of year. Instead we are going to stop in Gongmen City and take a boat to the Valley of Peace.” she informed him.

He sat up and winced, his whole body sore.

“We’re here.” he heard Ain call out.

They grabbed their things and hopped out of the wagon. The air was noticeably warmer as they had moved a significant distance south. The smell of seawater filled their noses and Ain pointed them towards a small boat.

“Thank you for the transport Ain.” Enkii said.

He grunted then said, “It will take you only a few hours to arrive at the Valley of Peace. Good luck to you.”

With that he began pulling the wagon into the towering city. They boarded the boat, greeted the captain, and set sail towards the Valley of Peace.

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  



	4. Chapter 4

**Please leave a review to tell me what you think**

**Enjoy!**

  
  


**Chapter 4**

Kai stepped out to the bow where Enkii was standing. 

They looked at the sheer mountains in front of them as the boat arrived at a quaint village along the river they were on.

“Here’s your stop.” the captain said stopping at a small, lonely harbor.

They hopped off the boat and looked around. They saw a black goose standing at the harbor waiting for them.

“Are you Kairos Sao?” he asked the bear.

“Yes”

“Are you Enkii Ulta?”

“Yes”

“Good! Let me get you guys to the place you will be staying.” he said.

He led them out of the dismal harbor and to a lively village where hundreds of people were bustling around. He led them up the street where they saw a huge palace perched on top of one of the smaller mountains.

“Welcome to the Valley of Peace.” he said cheerfully as he saw them gawk at the Jade Palace.

They passed by a little restaurant with a panda walking around inside of it. The banner above the entrance read “Ping’s Noodle Shop”.

The black goose told them to wait as he walked into the restaurant and spoke to the panda pointing to Kai and Enkii. The panda smiled and quickly ran over to them.

“Haha, there you guys are!” the panda said with a big smile. “My name is Po Ping.”

“My name is Kairos Sao.” Kai responded, a little confused.

Kai reached out his paw to Po, who shook it vigorously.

“My name is Enkii Ulta. Pleased to meet you, Dragon Warrior.” she bowed.

_ Shit this is the Dragon Warrior?  _ thought Kai, regretting not bowing.

Po looked at her for a second with a bewildered expression.

“What?” she asked.

“Oh, nothing, it’s just that you look exactly like Master Tigress.” Po said quickly bowing in return. “Alright let’s get you guys to your rooms!”

He grabbed them both and began walking towards the steps to the palace. As they walked he began to make cheery conversation.

“I have heard so much about you guys!” Po said excitedly.

“You have?” Kai asked, shocked.

“Of course! How else would I know to send you invitations?” Po responded.

“What did you hear about us?” Kai asked.

“I heard you single handedly wiped out the Qinchai gang in three days.” he said.

“How did you hear about that? I thought the Qinchai were a local gang.” 

“Oh no no no, the Qinchai were a legendary terrorist gang that harbored and served Tzu Lin. They were known all throughout China for their excessively brutal raids of small villages and towns.” Po stated, a hint of sadness crept into his voice. “Their leader, Tzu Lin, killed multiple high level Kung Fu masters and were moving their way northwest until we heard they had been eradicated by a martial artist in a small fishing village.”

“Huh… was Tzu Lin that tall bear?” Kai asked.

“Yeah, he looked a lot like you actually.” Po said, his voice happy again.

“Kai, how did you not know about the Qinchai?” Enkii asked suddenly.

“The Lu Shi village doesn’t exactly have current events.” he said sardonically. “Also I didn’t wipe out the whole gang on my own. My mentor and brother, Zhikan, helped as well.”

“Yes, I’ve heard about Zhikan. He designed an odd Kung Fu style correct?” Po asked.

“Well it’s not exactly Kung Fu although it does use elements of it.” Kai corrected.

Po squealed, “Woah, what type of techniques do you use.” he asked enthusiastically.

“You’ll just have to wait and see.” Kai teased with a smile.

Po looked a little disappointed when he said this.

“What did you hear about me?” Enkii asked.

“You are the only female to win the Li Jo tournament as well as defend the Kirpon Confederacy from multiple bandit raids!”

Enkii smiled, impressed by his amount of knowledge.

They reached the palace stairs. Kai and Enkii were already ten steps up when they saw Po still at the bottom of the stairs.

“Come on Po! You got this!” Po said to himself. He took three deep breaths before charging up the stairs. He made it about thirty steps before he collapsed, breathing heavily. They both looked at him with a confused look as he stood up.

“*huff* Stairs *huff*” Po panted.

They continued to climb the stairs, Po breathing heavily the whole way.

“One sec *huff* let me just *huff* catch my breath.” Po said once they reached the top. “Alright let’s go!”

He brought them to a small building.

“This is the kitchen, those are the bathrooms, and these are the student quarters.” Po said enthusiastically. “We had them extended just for this tournament. Your room should be the first one at the end of the hall.”

“Room, singular?” Enkii asked, gesturing to herself and Kai.

“Yeah, sorry. There was only one room remaining since you guys arrived a bit late.” Po apologized.

They went into the room to set their bags down. When they returned to the hallway, Po was waiting for them.

“Ok, there are also just a few rules when staying here. One, since you guys are sharing a room, no *ahem* you know. Two, lights out is at midnight, no later. Three, no entering other people’s rooms without permission. Got it? Great!” Po said. “Alright let’s go meet the other masters.”

Po guided them to the large training hall where five masters were doing an assortment of activities. The instant Po arrived, the other masters ran up and bowed.

“Master.” they said in unison.

Po bowed in return and introduced them to Kai and Enkii.

“Kairos, these are masters Monkey, Crane, Viper, Mantis, and Tigress. The Furious Five! Monkey, Crane, Viper, Mantis, Tigress this is Kairos, the Vanquisher of the Qinchai!” He said enthusiastically.

Kai, unfamiliar with the title, bowed awkwardly. The five bowed in return.

“And this is Enkii! The Ferocious Feline of Kirpon and the only female victor of the Li Jo tournament!” Po announced.

“Pleased to meet you.” she said as she smiled and bowed. The five bowed to her as well before walking towards them.

“God damn you are enormous.” Mantis said, poking Kai’s biceps.

“Yeah, well I am actually a bear believe it or not.” Kai said sarcastically.

“You look exactly like Tigress just with different eyes and stripes.” Monkey said looking back and forth between Tigress and Enkii.

“Now that you mention it, she really does.” Mantis said, jumping onto Enkii and examining her.

“Maybe they are related.” Monkey offered.

“Ok guys enough poking around.” Viper scolded.

They began walking through the hall.

“What do you guys train for in here?” Kai asked as he looked around at the enormous hall.

“Normally we just train to protect the valley, but right now we are training for the tournament.” Tigress responded.

This caught Kai off guard, “You guys are competing?”

“Uhhh duh.” Mantis said mockingly. “We happen to be six of the best masters in China.”

“Yeah, but aren’t you guys hosting? How does that work?” Kai asked.

“You know I actually haven’t thought about that.” Mantis responded rubbing his chin.

“Can I go for a run through the course?” Enkii asked suddenly.

“Of course!” Po said happily. “In fact, any master who visits here has to. It’s part of our hazing process!”

Tigress rolled her eyes.

The whole group stopped to watch her go through the course for the first time. She started by the rotating spike dummies which she swiftly and masterfully maneuvered through. She jumped onto the fire pipes and easily evaded all of the flames before leaping incredibly far onto the rolling serpents, jumping lightly from serpent to serpent evading all of the swinging spikes. She landed gracefully to applause from the group. She looked ecstatic at her success.

“Your turn Kairos!” Monkey said pushing him onto the fire pipes and laughing.

He moved through the fire easily and landed inside the rotating spike dummies. His leg hit one of the dummies causing them all to start rotating randomly. He dodged and weaved with mind-boggling speed before annihilating each of the dummies. As soon as they were all destroyed, ten arrows came flying out of nowhere. He caught all of them, immediately snapping them in half, before jumping onto the rolling serpents which he moved through insanely fast landing on his feet with a thump that shook the whole building. He wasn’t met with applause, instead with shocked looks.

“What?” he asked.

“Y-you just did that in three seconds.” Po said as he stared at the dummies which were practically sawdust now. “You beat the record by sixteen seconds.”

He shrugged, “I thought I went through it normally.”

Tigress, being the former record holder, suddenly had a competitive aura surrounding her.

“Ok we’re sparring right now.” she commanded much to the others' surprise.

“Ok.” Kai returned shrugging. “But I don’t think that it’s gonna go the way you think it will.”

The rest of the group gave each other looks that said  _ he’s dead _ , and Monkey and Mantis made a bet, both of them placing one hundred Yuan on the floor in front of them.

They went into the center of the training hall.

“Ready?” Tigress asked, getting into her stance.

“Ready.” Kai said, his arms crossed.

Tigress pounced the instant the word left his mouth, releasing a flurry of strikes. Kai blocked each of these strikes easily before catching her arm and shoulder tossing her. The ground cracked where she landed as Kai took side control then passed into mount. Instead of submitting her, though, he stood up, allowing her to get up and ready to fight again. 

“Call it a professional courtesy.” Kai said slyly when Tigress looked confused.

She stood up with a look of rage and jumped at him. He back stepped before throwing her again this time taking her back and sinking in a perfect rear naked choke. Tigress tapped quickly as the blood flow to her brain was being cut off. Kai jumped back to where the rest of the masters were standing. Everyone except for Monkey gawked at him and Mantis let out a wheeze.

“I- WHA- HOLY SHIT.” Mantis yelled in disbelief as Monkey snatched the money. “I can’t believe it.”

Tigress stood up rubbing her neck.

“What WAS that?” she asked.

“It was a rear naked choke.” Kai responded. “If done properly, it will put your opponent to sleep in less than ten seconds, and kill them in less than twenty.”

“That’s so cool.” Po whispered.

“Shall we continue?” Kai asked the group. They nodded their heads. He sparred each one of them multiple times, winning each time. By the end, everyone except for Kai was exhausted.

“Jeez man,” Po panted, “where did you learn to fight like that?”

“Uhh my mentor Zhikan taught me at his martial arts academy.” Kai responded blankly.

“What martial art is it?” Crane asked.

“Well it was never given a name, it’s basically just a bunch of other martial arts packed into one.” Kai shrugged. “If I win the tournament, I’ll uhh teach you guys the basics.”

“Sounds like a plan,” said Mantis. “now what?”

“Well, I’m starving. We should head over to the barracks to eat.” Po said. “You two are welcome to join us if you would like.”

They all walked over to the barracks kitchen and Po started cooking.

Soon Kai was deep in conversation with Mantis and Monkey while Enkii was being occupied by Tigress.

“Then this motherfucker asks me for a tip after he dropped the food, gotten the wrong drinks, and acted like a pretentious dick the whole time!” Kai said, telling a story.

“What did you say? What did you say?” Mantis asked, laughing.

“I said ‘No you fucking grape’.”

This remark caused the guys to erupt with laughter and Monkey to spit out his entire mouthful of soup which only made them laugh more.

“Hold on. Hold on I got one.” Mantis said. “So this one time I was eating with one of my old friends, Jin, when he got shit face drunk and decided to try and eat as much food as he possibly could. I watch him sitting there, sucking food down his throat like a feral hog when he randomly stops and looks at me and says ‘I gotta shit man’. Suddenly this super cute girl walks up to him and starts flirting with him when his eyes go super wide and he says ‘I gotta go’ and he runs away to the bathrooms. Turns out this fucking idiot had shat his pants.”

All the guys in the room laughed.

“How do you guys find any of that even remotely funny?” Tigress condescended.

“How do you not wanna die from your fucking humorless life?” Kai shot back, the unexpected burn prompting quite a bit of howling laughter from Monkey and Mantis as well as some suppressed chuckling from Crane.

Tigress just shook her head and continued talking to Enkii. 

Eventually Po gave Tigress an odd smile which she returned before standing up and excusing herself. Po followed soon after.

“Those two are definitely fucking.” said Mantis, once Po was out of earshot.

“Who? Kai and Enkii?” Monkey asked, making Kai and Enkii blush.

“No you idiot, Po and Tigress.” Mantis hissed.

“Oh yeah those two are fucking up a storm.” Monkey laughed.

“Wait, they're together?” Enkii asked.

“No they’re not, or at least not in public.” Mantis admitted. “But come on, isn’t it a bit suspicious that Po gave Tigress that weird smile as if they had planned it, then she excuses herself and Po leaves three minutes later? Yeah, no. Those two are and have been fucking for awhile.”

“ I guess it’s not impossible, I mean we did finish off the entire bottle of Baijiu, although most of that was Po and Kai.” Crane stated, rubbing his beak.

“Yeah, I guess if they were both shitfaced it would make sense,” Enkii’s words were slightly slurred. “But Kai drank most of the bottle.” 

She smiled at him.

“What can I say.” Kai said without a hint of drunkness. “I’m a heavyweight.”

“Wait are you two a piece?” Mantis asked, motioning towards Kai and Enkii who blushed again.

“Mantis!” Viper hissed. “Boundaries!”

Thoughts about the question flew rapidly through Enkii’s head.  _ Are we a couple?  _ She went into deep thought as a comfortable silence fell onto the room. 

“Well I’m gonna hit the sac.” Mantis said, breaking the silence.

“Yeah me too.” 

“Me too.”

They all left the kitchen and walked to their rooms noticing the other competitors also entering into the barracks for the night. Presumably having been out on the town.

Kai had to carry Enkii to their room as she had had three shots of the Baiju and didn’t really drink much.

When they got to their room Enkii asked an unexpected question.

“Kai,” she said, clearly very drunk, “Are we a couple?”

As she said this she nuzzled her head into his chest. Kai looked down at this tigress he had only known for four days. The logical part of his brain said  _ no of course not _ , but the emotional side thought different. He decided to listen to his emotional side, a rare occurrence.

He sighed as he set her down on her bed.

“I guess that’s what we are, huh.” he said as he smiled at his purring feline. He put a pillow on her side in case she threw up while she slept and walked to his bed. He laid down, a mixture of thoughts running through his head as he drifted into the calm, quiet night.

  
  
  
  



	5. Chapter 5

**Please enjoy! :)**

**Chapter 5**

***BONG***

***BONG*** **  
** **  
** ***BONG***

Kai was shocked awake by the sound of a loud gong. He groaned as he stood up and stretched. Outside in the hallway he heard the five say in unison.

“Good morning Master!”

He looked at Enkii who was just waking up. She stood up, rubbing her head before stumbling to the window and vomiting out of it. She turned around and downed the glass of water next to her before noticing Kai still in the room. She jumped a little not expecting him to be there.

“Good morning.” Kai said.

“Good morning.” she responded with a small smile. “W-what happened last night?”

“Well you downed three shots of the Baiju and I had to carry your drunk ass back to the room.” Kai remarked teasingly.

“Anything else?” she asked suspiciously.

He hesitated a bit which Enkii took notice of.

“Well… uh you... asked me if we are a couple.” 

Kai cringed a bit, only now, looking back did he realize how abnormal it was for him to answer such a question with anything more than a grunt.

“And what did you say?” Enkii asked, her heart beginning to pound, an odd mixture of hope and fear rising in her soul.

“Well uhh… I uhh… I said y-yes.” Kai said, scratching the back of his neck in embarrassment.

Suddenly she jumped forward and pulled him into a tight hug beaming with delight. Kai went stiff as a board from the sudden affection before he wrapped his arms around her as well. They stood in their embrace for a while. When they released Enkii gave him a shy peck on the lips before exiting the room. Kai’s eyes flew wide open as a rush of dopamine charged through his brain. He stood there in shock before chuckling at the absurdity of the situation.

_ “I am dating a girl I’ve only known for five days and I confessed my love to her in the Jade Palace”  _ he thought, a small smile on his face.

Enkii’s heart was destroying her ribcage as she scurried out of the room before Kai could see the embarrassment on her face.  _ What am I doing? What came over me just then? I just… kissed him… I-I don’t get it… What about Kai am I so… attracted to? _ Enkii pondered this question as she tried to figure out an answer.  _ Is it his looks? Hmm… no. Though he is pretty handsome albeit in a bit of a rough way. Is it his body? _ She almost purred as she remembered seeing his muscular back, though she only saw it for a second, she remembered it quite clearly.  _ Maybe, but he has it hidden under his baggy clothes most of the time, so why do I still feel so strongly towards him even without thinking of his body? Not only that, but many males with nice bodies and handsome faces have tried to court me, but I have never felt even the slightest bit attracted to any of them. Hmm…  _ Then a realization hit her. While the carnal, primitive brain saw Kai as a suitable mate based on his superficial attributes, she realized that her soul was attracted to the affection he gave her and the way he gave it. She felt it first when she found Kai sleeping with his arm around her in the wagon and she felt it now, after Kai had declared their relationship. He gave her something she was deprived of her whole life until that point. True affection.

Kai exited the room a small smile still on his face. The smile quickly faded as his overly pessimistic mind brought up a thought. He had dated numerous girls in the past, all of which he soon broke up with when he realized that they only “loved” his looks and his… something else. He had completely sworn off relationships for four years before he met Enkii who just clicked with him perfectly. The idea that she might only care for his superficial attributes disturbed Kai greatly.

_ God, I need to get more optimistic... _

He began towards the kitchen, deep in thought. When he arrived he was surprised by a small figure.

“Ahh, you must be Kairos.” a red panda said to him, bowing. “I am Grandmaster Shifu.”

Kai returned the bow, a bit surprised. “Nice to meet you Grandmaster Shifu.”

Shifu smiled as he moved out of the kitchen.

“We told him how you whooped us yesterday.” Mantis said blandly. “That’s why he bowed to you.”

“I see.” Kai said blankly as he grabbed a glass of water and made to leave.

“Where are you going?” Mantis asked when he noticed Kai leaving the kitchen.

“To meditate.” Kai said calmly.

“What about breakfast?” Po asked.

“I’m not particularly hungry at the moment.” 

“Okayyy… We’ll see you in the training hall?” Crane asked

“Yeah.” Kai left the kitchen.

As he began his walk towards the training hall he noticed many of the competitors he saw the night before making their way down the thousand steps. Kai looked around a bit before he saw Enkii looking at him. Kai met her gaze and smiled. Enkii smiled back shyly as a blush came about her face. Kai continued to the training hall.

He stepped inside and began searching for something. Finally he found two stools in the training hall each about a meter tall. He put the two stools next to each other and jumped on top, one foot on each stool. He began to spread his feet apart slowly until he was performing a perfect chair split. He closed his eyes and focused on his breathing. His mind was totally devoid of thought until he heard someone speak to him.

“What are you doing?” Tigress asked.

“Meditating.” Kai answered as he exited the chair split and opened his eyes. “Well, I  _ was _ meditating.”

“In a chair split?” Tigress asked doubtfully.

“Yes actually.” Kai responded, a little offended.

“Well, meditating or not it doesn’t matter.” she waved her hand then motioned at the rest of the group, “ We propose a challenge to you.”

“And what would that be?” Kai asked.

“You sparring one vs seven.” Tigress responded smugly as if she thought they would win.

Kai saw Enkii at the back of the group, she wore a look of hesitance as if she didn’t want to spar her new mate. Kai took note of this as he addressed the group.

“Okay I accept, but one condition.” Kai responded.

“What’s the condition?” Tigress asked.

“You don’t get angry at me when you all are on the ground gasping for air.” He said with a smirk.

The rest of the group save for Enkii looked at him and imitated Tigress’s smug look. They went outside and the seven surrounded Kai while taking their stances. The group aired confidence.

“Ready!” they said in unison.

“Ready.” Kai responded.

Instantly they all pounced. Kai ducked a kick from Enkii before sweeping her leg and throwing her at Monkey sending them both tumbling away. There was no time to waste as Tigress and Po both started throwing strikes his way. Kai blocked each of these strikes with one hand before backstepping and delivering a question mark kick that knocked Po out instantly. Before Kai noticed, Mantis swept his leg and sent him onto his back where Viper and Tigress both tried to attack. Viper was met with a devastating up-kick that knocked her out cold before, in perfect sequence, Kai hipped-up and headbutted Tigress, knocking her out as well. Mantis and Monkey both came flying at Kai, but were met with a perfectly timed split-kick knocking each of them out as well. Crane suddenly came swooping down and began combat with Kai as Enkii stood up and charged him. Kai quickly slept Crane with a vicious right hook as he saw Enkii running towards him. He lowered his level and shot into a double-leg takedown seizing her lower half in a tight grab. He stood up, about to slam Enkii, but then he stopped and set her down gently instead.

“Why did you stop?” Enkii asked, breathing hard.

“If I would’ve finished that move you would be a splatter of gore on the ground,” Kai responded, “and that is something I definitely do NOT want.”

_ Besides, I don’t want to hurt my mate. _ He thought.

“I don’t believe you.” she said back, smiling teasingly.

“That I don’t want you to get hurt?” Kai asked, totally bewildered. 

“No, you big idiot. I mean that I would die upon impact from that… move you did.” she said this with a smirk on her face.

_ Idiot huh. Well at least she’s comfortable around me.  _ Kai thought.

“Really?” he responded.

She simply nodded.

“Ok look.” he grabbed one of the sand filled punching dummies and performed the same take downn. He reared his back and completed the takedown which instantly evaporated the dummy and shook the ground, leaving a crater in the stone. 

“See.” he laughed at Enkii’s shocked look.

“Y-yeah…” she responded sheepishly.

Kai gave her a little smile and a head rub before going out to help out the others. Enkii’s heart fluttered happily at the touch and she quickly followed suit.

“Uggg.” Po groaned as he sat up, he suddenly remembered where he was.

“Hey! Did we win?” Po asked hopefully.

“No.” Kai answered as he helped Po up.

“Of course not.” Po sighed.

They heard groans from the other masters as they got up. They each had the same question as Po until they saw a totally uninjured Kai standing before them.

“Your strength and speed are nothing short of… unnatural.” Tigress stated as she rubbed her forehead. “The last person who beat more than one of us at once was Kai the Collector and even he was beaten by Po eventually.”

Kai just shrugged. 

“I told you that I would win.” he said blankly.

Before he got a response there was a knocking on the gate door.

“Who is it?” Tigress asked, opening the gate slightly.

Before her stood a tall, grey wolf with a toned body.

“Uhh hello, I was told I could find Kairos Sao here.” the wolf said.

“And what business do you have with Master Kairos?” she asked suspiciously.

“MASTER!? HA! That’s a good one. I’m his  _ professor  _ and I wish to speak with him.” he responded.

“Kai, someone is here for you!” she called behind her still eying the wolf suspiciously.

Kai approached the door and was surprised by who he saw.

“Brother! What are you doing here?” Kai asked happily.

“Your dumbass seriously thought I was gonna miss the largest martial arts event in the history of China which my brother is competing in?” Zhikan joked.

“Good to see you here Zhikan.” Kai smiled and embraced his comrade as he chuckled.

“Zhikan?!” he heard the others say as they swiftly approached as well.

“Woah, you guys look battered.” Zhikan said as he noticed the state of the other masters.

“Yeah, we just finished sparring with Kai seven on one.” Mantis said blankley.

“Really? You lost seven on one to this lack-luster fighter?” Zhikan teased.

This remark warranted a punch in the ribs from Kai.

“Yeah, he destroyed us.” Po said. “Oh wait, where are my manners? I’m Po Ping, the Dragon Warrior, these are Monkey, Mantis, Viper, Tigress, and Crane, the Furious Five!” they all bowed.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you all, I am Professor Zhikan.” he bowed in return

“I am Enkii, pleased to meet you Zhikan.” she said.

“You too.” he responded as he shook Enkii’s paw.

“Sooo, I thought that Zhikan was your literal brother, but he’s actually just like a really close friend/mentor? How did that come to be?” Mantis asked after they completed their pleasantries.

Zhikan and Enkii both looked at Kai with the same nervous expression. Kai’s eyes grew sad and his face contorted as the memories of how and why he met his brother flashed through his head.

“Uhh… I uhh… I…” Kai stuttered quietly as he stared at the ground.

Thankfully Enkii came to the rescue.

“That is a story for another time.” she said as she walked up to Kai and rubbed his back.

The rest just looked at her in confusion and at Kai in slight concern. They were also a bit thrown off by the affection Enkii was directing towards Kai.

“I… I need to be excused for a moment.” Kai said as he walked away deep in thought.

“What’s up with him?” Monkey asked once Kai had disappeared.

“Like Enkii said, it’s a long story.” Zhikan responded. “One that I’m not sure Kai is comfortable sharing yet.”

Kai had made it to his destination, the forest just outside of the palace that he had taken note of when he first arrived. Before him stood tall ironwood trees as well as multiple oaks and maples. He looked at each one as thoughts ran through his head. Like usual, when he thought of his childhood before he met Zhikan, he was filled with anxiety, fear, and rage. A deep, burning hatred for his father was writhing within him as he punched the tree closest to him. It exploded with a tremendous  ***CRACK*.**

The masters looked in the direction Kai had walked and saw a colossal ironwood tree explode followed suit by a loud  ***CRACK*.** Zhikan noticed their shocked confusion and explained.

“Whenever Kai feels angry, upset, or any number of other emotions, he takes them out by ‘hitting the trees’. It allows him to release enormous amounts of pent up stress and emotions without really bothering anyone.”

“What’s he angry about?” Po asked.

“For the third time, it’s a LOOONG story.” Zhikan responded, slightly annoyed. “One day, if he stays here, I’m sure each of you will learn.”

“Yeah IF he stays here. He would have to get at least third place in the tournament to receive that reward.” Mantis said.

“You seriously don’t think he will win, even after you’ve seen what he can do?” Zhikan asked, dumbfounded.

“All I’m saying is that none of us have seen what the rest of the competition is capable of, however if Enkii and Kai are anything to base it off of…” Mantis returned.

He shrugged. 

The group now saw Kai now returning, a fire in his eyes. 

“Anybody up for round two?” he called out, a bit of a smile forming across his face.

“I’m up for round one.” Zhikan offered, knowing full well Kai still had anger to take out.

Kai was now grinning, ecstatic at the thought of sparring his brother. The rest of the masters noticed Kai’s grin and looked at Zhikan with a bit of worry.

“Are you sure you wanna spar Kai? He took all of us on one versus seven and won without a scratch.” Po warned.

“Of course! I spar him all the time!” Zhikan reassured, a grin now spreading on his face as well. “Come at me Kai, you enormous vegetable!”

Instantly Kai was right in front of Zhikan and they started sparring.

The rest of the group just watched on in awe as they moved at unimaginable speeds, each strike sending deafening shockwaves throughout the palace. 

They continued sparring now having moved a good distance away from the group.

“Ahem.”

Master Shifu had appeared and was watching the match before him.

The group quickly stopped watching and instantly bowed.

“Master.”

He nodded then said, “So who is our guest?”

Po quickly answered, “That’s Zhikan, he’s Kai’s mentor.”

Shifu looked to the rest of the group for confirmation as they all nodded. He then noticed another unfamiliar face.

“Ahh I don’t believe we’ve met before.” Shifu gestured towards Enkii.

Enkii looked at him and said, “I’m Enkii Ulta, one of the competitors for the upcoming Gonglu Tournament. I believe we have met before, I passed you in the barracks hall this morning.”

Shifu rubbed his chin.

“He probably mistook you for Tigress.” Monkey joked.

“It’s not impossible. You two do bear quite the resemblance, though you are still quite distinguishable.” Shifu said.

“How are they distinguishable? Other than the slight differences in stripes, I can hardly tell the difference!” Mantis exclaimed.

“Well for one, Mantis, their eyes are slightly different colors. They also stand differently and dress differently. The main distinguisher, however, is their aura. Tigress has a confident, serious aura. Enkii’s is similar for sure, but more… playful, less serious and definitely less confident.” Shifu responded.

Enkii looked down slightly.  _ Huh… I guess he’s right, I’m not exactly a very confident person.  _ She thought.

The masters all nodded their heads in understanding before turning their attention back to the spectacle in front of them.

“Truly impressive, I can barely see what they are doing!” Shifu exclaimed while squinting.

“Well it’s definitely NOT Kung Fu that’s for sure.” Crane said.

“You are correct Crane, it appears as though they are utilizing elements from multiple martial arts.” Shifu said.

“Yeah that’s literally what Kai said he does, didn’t we already discuss this?” Po said, looking at Crane.

“Discuss is the wrong word, Po.” Tigress said. “He merely gave us a quick response to explain how he fights.”

“I guess, but I’m just saying that it’s not exactly a revelation ya know?” he responded.

With that the masters returned to watching the two warriors fight.

**With Kai and Zhikan**

Zhikan had shoulder-tossed Kai and now held him in an oppressive side control as a thought crossed his mind.

“Oh yeah! Kai!” Zhikan said.

“What?”

“There was a reason I came all the way up here today instead of just waiting for the tournament.” Zhikan continued.

Kai listened, now intrigued.

“So you know that girl I’ve been dating for six years now, Meinu?” Zhikan asked.

“Yeeeees…” Kai replied.

Meinu was a beautiful black wolf with a white tail. She was one of the regular students at the academy and was one of the few people Kai actually considered friends.

“Well she is uhhh…  _ pregnant… _ ” Zhikan said as Kai’s eyes flew open.

They both stood up as Kai screamed, “WHAT?!”

The masters a few hundred meters away took notice of this and began to talk amongst themselves.

“She’s PREGNANT?!” Kai asked loudly.

Zhikan smacked him as he gestured at the masters who were obviously talking to each other.

“Yes.” he hissed. “She told me before I left for here.”

“Wow, that was unexpected.” Kai said in disbelief.

“Pfft, that’s nothing I also proposed to her-” Zhikan quickly covered his mouth as Kai’s eyes widened again.

A proud look crept across Kai’s face.

“You’re getting married huh? Well it’s about goddamn time! I mean you’re thirty nine already!” Kai said as he gave Zhikan a light punch in the arm.

Zhikan just looked up at Kai and smiled a bit.

“We were hoping to surprise you when you visited for the Winter Feast, but…” he just shrugged.

The other masters were now approaching, and Kai noticed that it was getting late. He told Zhikan that he should stay for dinner and all the other masters agreed, eager to speak to Kai’s mentor. They also tried to get Zhikan to spill what he and Kai had talked about, but to no avail.

They then moved to the kitchen where Po immediately started to cook a “special” dish. The rest were lost in conversation all listening eagerly to Kai and Zhikan’s stories. Mantis had brought out a second bottle of Baiju. Most of the masters chose to partake, though some (Po and Tigress) of the masters chose to refrain.

“I told you!” Mantis whispered to Kai when he noticed this. “Something must have happened last night! Ha!”

Kai just grunted as he finished his fourth shot.

To nobody's surprise, Zhikan drank similar volumes to Kai. Enkii made sure to only take two shots this time, hoping she would at least be able to remember the night when she woke up.

Soon Po had finished this “special dish” and Kai was surprised to find that it was a delicious smelling noodle soup.

“Order up! Secret Ingredient Soup!” Po said with pride.

“Yes!” Mantis and Monkey exclaimed happily.

“Kai, this stuff is MAGICAL!” Mantis told him as he began tearing into his bowl.

Kai slammed his final shot before he took a bite of his noodles. He noticed everyone staring at him, Zhikan, and Enkii eagerly. He was surprised by the flavors that hit his mouth. The broth was savory and rich which paired perfectly with the sweet char siu pork and the pungent chives. He swallowed his first bite and looked up.

“Soooo…” Mantis said excitedly.

“I am quite surprised by your competence, Po” Kai replied after a few moments of tension.

The statement said all Kai needed to say as Po let out a small sigh of relief.

Zhikan and Enkii tried the soup for themselves, both giving satisfactory reactions before everyone else continued eating.

The kitchen was alive with laughter and conversation again as Zhikan and Kai continued the story of how they decimated the Qinchai, their witty banter entertaining the whole kitchen.

“So what martial arts do you practice anyway?” Crane asked Zhikan after he finished his story.

“It’s a mixture of quite a few. Off the top of my head it’s Jiu Jitsu, Kung Fu, Muay Thai, greco-roman wrestling, Judo, and Eskrima.” he responded.

Most of the masters, except for Shifu and Enkii looked confused having never heard of any of those arts before (Except for Kung Fu).

“Anyways, it’s getting pretty late. I will be taking my leave now. I appreciate the hospitality greatly, and I quite enjoyed my time here. Thank you.” 

With that Zhikan left.

“I will be turning in for the night as well.” Kai said. “Could anyone guide me to the bath house?”

Crane brought him to the bath house near the barracks as the other competitors began to return and the other masters resigned to their rooms.

Kai thanked Crane and entered the stall. The interior held a large in-ground tub as well as a small towel rack and a fireplace with multiple moderately large stones sitting inside.

Kai lit a fire and began to undress to just his undergarments as he let the fire heat the stones to an acceptable temperature. While the stones were heating, Kai pulled the lever to divert water flow into the tub to fill it. He grabbed some lye soap as well as his pipe and some hemp out of his bag. His nerves had been up a bit throughout the whole day despite his seemingly jolly attitude. Sadly that’s just how his days went anytime he’s forced to think about his childhood. He was hoping that a little hemp could help ease his nerves a bit and hopefully allow him to get a full deep sleep because the next day they began preparations for the Gonglu Tournament, and there was a lot to do. He was about to start packing his pipe when he heard a knocking on the door. He approached and saw the silhouette of someone shorter than him by nearly thirty centimeters.

“Who is it?” he asked.

“It’s me.”

The voice was distinctly female and Kai instantly knew who it was. He opened the door and sure enough, Enkii stood before him. Her eyes widened when she saw Kai was naked except for a pair of short pants. 

“C-can I come in?” she sounded only mildly drunk.

Kai said with a questioning look. “Why?”

“Well, all the other bathing stalls are occupied at the moment and I figured since we’re dating now it would be alright if we…” she trailed off.

“Uhh…” Kai looked around at the stall. It was relatively spacious and it was obviously built for privacy. “Suuure…”

He let Enkii in, both of them blushing heavily. He closed the door and locked it before he noticed Enkii staring at him.

Enkii was shocked at what she saw. Kai was painted in scars all over his back and shoulders as well as his chest and neck. She hadn’t noticed them before when she had first glanced at him changing for a second. She knew why he had them, but still, she was shocked at how brutal his father had been.

Kai just sighed as he realized what she was staring at and he subconsciously began rubbing the scars near his jugular. He sat down and picked up his pipe which was now packed with hemp bud.

Enkii was brought out of her state of shock when she noticed this. She watched him curiously as she too began to undress.

“What’s that?” she asked, now stripped to just the wraps around her sensitive areas.

Kai looked up at her and recoiled a bit in shock when he noticed her current outfit or lack there-of.

“It’s uhh hemp. It helps me calm my nerves and go to sleep.” he said, trying not to look at her too much while she was indecent.

“Can I try it?” she asked. 

“S-sure.” he handed her the pipe as well as the burning stick. She did everything he did and soon released a thick white smoke from her mouth. She moved her tongue in her mouth a bit, hoping to get the taste out as she handed the pipe back to him. Kai finished off the pipe before he stood up and grabbed the now red hot stones.

He dropped them into the water and it instantly began to boil. He sat at the edge and waited for it to cool, the effects of the hemp starting to hit him. He sat there and stared at the water for what felt like a long time, but was only a few seconds. He noticed Enkii was also feeling the hemp as she sat next to him and leaned up to him. 

“You know I’m your mate right? You don’t have to look away from me just because I’m indecent.” Enkii said out of nowhere.

She forced him to look at her by turning his head with one finger. When he did, he looked her up and down. Her figure was toned and athletic, not to the degree Kai’s was, but still in quite good shape. Kai was happy that she was at least wearing undergarmets because two people of the opposite sex being drunk and high, taking a bath together naked is never a recipe for responsible decisions ( **Stay safe kiddos, don’t make the same mistakes as me** ). Something else caught his attention though. On her midsection and arms were multiple scars. Out of nowhere, some protective instinct overcame him. A low, involuntary growl exited his maw as he thought about the person who gave her these scars, and how if he ever met them, he was going to gut them like a fish.

“W-what’s wrong Kai?” Enkii asked when she heard the growl.

Kai immediately snapped out of it.

“I-I was just thinking about the person that gave you those scars, sorry.”

Kai, slightly embarrassed, dipped his finger into the water to test the temperature. It was still quite warm, but he knew that it would continue to cool after he got in.

Meanwhile, Enkii was caught off guard. Though she knew that the booze and hemp were playing a big role, she felt…  _ warm  _ and…  _ fuzzy  _ inside. The mere thought of describing herself with such adjectives disgusted her, but she couldn’t deny it. Something about how protective Kai was of her just did her in.

Kai hopped into the water and let out a satisfied sigh as a shiver ran up his spine. He braced his arms on the edge of the tub and relaxed only to find something, or rather someone, cuddle up next to him.

Kai looked over at the feline, noticing her staring at him with a smile. 

_ Woah, she is so… cute…  _ Kai thought.

He placed his arm around her and pulled her closer as they sat in a comfortable silence, simply enjoying each other’s presence. Enki nuzzled her head into his chest and began to purr subconsciously. Kai listened to her purr. It was oddly soothing like the sound of a light breeze or a mild thunderstorm. Kai couldn’t help but feel incredibly lucky at that moment.

_ What did I do to deserve this? _

Little did Kai know, Enkii was feeling the exact same way.

“I recall hearing that tigers can’t purr, they can only chuff. So how are you able to purr?” Kai asked, still enthralled by the soothing melody echoing from his mate. The effects of the hemp were painfully apparent to Kai and he scolded himself inwardly for asking such a random question.

“You are correct, tigers don’t purr, however, I’m pretty sure that I have the faintest trace of cougar in my DNA so I always figured that’s what it is.” she shrugged before continuing to purr softly into Kai’s chest.

They soaked there for a few minutes before there was another knock on the door.

Kai was broken out of his drug-enhanced trance and let out an annoyed groan.

“Who?” was all he said as he shook his head, his fingers on his brow.

“Uhh, it’s just Po. I was hoping to use this stall if you’re almost done.” Po said, a hint of nervousness in his voice.

Kai was happy that it was just Po and not someone he didn’t know. 

“Yup, we-I’ll be out in a few minutes.” Kai called back.

“Oh, thanks man. Who is it in here?” Po asked.

“Just me, Kai.” he responded.

“Oh… Sorry Kai, didn’t mean to interrupt your bath.”

“It’s really no problem.” Kai assured.

With that, Po left to wait for the stall to open up.

Enkii looked up at him with a somewhat disappointed expression as he stood and grabbed his lye soap. He quickly rubbed his body down with the soap before dunking completely to wash the suds off. They hopped out of the tub and dried off as they began to formulate a plan on how to get out without being caught, though the fact they were under the influence added an extra layer of difficulty.

They changed into fresh clothes and Kai packed up the rest of his hemp, his pipe, and his soap.

Kai poked his head out of the door to make sure the coast was clear before signaling Enkii to leave. She quickly went through the door and into the shadows. Kai waited a few moments before he too exited, making his way towards the barracks. When he entered, he found Po, Tigress, Monkey, and Crane still in the kitchen. Kai approached. Po noticed him and excused himself. Oddly enough, Tigress excused herself only moments after and appeared to head in the same direction as Po.

_ Huh, I guess Mantis really was right about those two… _

“Have either of you seen Enkii anywhere?” Kai asked the two masters still in the kitchen.

“Last we saw her she was headed for the baths along with Mantis and Viper.” Crane responded.

“Huh…” Kai said. “Well, uhh goodnight.”

With that Kai made his way towards his room silently celebrating the effectiveness of his plan. Once he got to the room, he laid down on his bed and just enjoyed the effects of the hemp while he waited for Enkii.

Within ten minutes, Enkii had appeared in the room. She stared at Kai longingly. Kai noticed this and thought about the logistics of having two people in one of the Jade Palace beds. They were maybe half a meter wider than a normal single bed and have strong bamboo frames. He scooted as close as he could to the wall. He was quite a large individual so it only left a little more than half a meter of open space. This was apparently enough for Enkii, as she instantly laid down next to him, holding him in a sort of hug, her head buried in his chest. Kai wrapped his arm around her, like usual and pulled her in. In no time she was purring softly into his chest, and Kai was once again lost in that soothing sound. He slowly drifted off to sleep, a small smile on his face.

***BONG***

***BONG***

***BONG***

“Good morning master!”

Kai slowly opened his eyes. He noticed that both he and Enkii had shifted during their sleep. Kai was now facing the tigress who had her back turned and pressed up against Kai’s front. He also, somewhat embarrassingly, found his paws rested comfortably on Enkii’s hips. Enkii was already awake, and when she felt Kai shift, she pushed herself further into him. Kai rested his chin on top of her head and pulled her into an embrace.

She turned to face him before nuzzling her head into his neck. Kai happily accepted the show of affection, ignoring the speed at which this relationship was progressing. A low, happy rumble escaped Kai’s throat before he stood up and stretched, the sleepy tigress behind him trying in vain to pull him back into bed. 

Kai popped his knuckles and neck then turned around to drag his tiger out of bed.

“Today we have to prepare for the Gonglu Tournament tomorrow. Up up up come on.” Kai said as he gently lifted the groaning feline out of bed.

She yawned before stretching her back and arms. She tossed on her robe and planted a quick peck on Kai’s lips as they both exited. 

When Kai opened the door, he found a red and green scroll at his feet. He picked it up and unrolled it, taking note of the other identical scrolls in front of all the other rooms.

He read the contents out loud to Enkii.

**_The Centennial Gonglu Tournament Rules_ **

_ If you are reading this, then you have been selected to receive the honor that is competing in the centennial Gonglu Tournament. The Gonglu tournament is a bracket style tournament that tests the skill and competency of the best warriors throughout the world. It is hosted once every century by the prestigious Jade Palace and it’s masters. The top three competitors will receive cash rewards as well as the opportunity to become a student under the tutelage of the Jade Palace masters.  _

_ The rules are as follows. _

  * _Non-lethal force ONLY. Use of lethal force will result in immediate disqualification._


  * Participants can win matches in one of three ways. The three ways are as follows


  * Ring out


  * Points


  * Opponent is rendered unable to continue


  * Participants will each create and recite a series of kata to introduce their art. These katas must be UNIQUE and may last no longer than ten seconds


  * Weapons are allowed, but must be approved by the grandmaster first


  * These matches will be no holds barred. Any and all non-lethal techniques may be used


  * Each participant must sign the second scroll and check in any weapon(s) that they may use the day before the tournament



_ Inside the scroll casing is a second scroll. Please sign this and bring it to the grandmaster. _

Kai shook the scroll casing and two slightly thinner scrolls fell out. He handed one to Enkii before reading it.

_ By signing you are agreeing to each of the rules that were outlined in the previous scroll, and that you will accept any consequences for disobeying them.  _

Kai quickly signed the scroll then passed the quill to Enkii as he made his way off to find Shifu.

Enkii caught up as Kai made it to the kitchen. Kai stepped into the kitchen.

“Good morning.” he said to the masters currently inside. 

“Morning.” they said in unison.

“Anyone know where we can find Master Shifu?” Kai asked hurriedly, shaking the scroll in his hand.

“He should be meditating by the Sacred Peach Tree of Heavenly Wisdom which is just up those stone steps.” Po answered, pointing through the window. “He has a box behind him, just drop your scroll in there and try not to disturb him.”

The pair quickly made their way up staying as quiet as possible. They made no audible noise as they approached the master.

“Inner peace… inner peace… inner peace…” Shifu repeated his mantra, not noticing the two placing their scrolls into the box with six other scrolls already in it.

They silently retreated to the kitchen where Po had finished preparing a large plate of char siu bao for everyone. Kai took one and ate it quickly as he hurried off to the training hall, Enkii following close behind.

The instant they arrived they began to brainstorm ideas for what their displays would be. Enkii ran through a series of different Silat forms and techniques before deciding they didn’t look nearly impressive enough and instead opting for the more acrobatic Monkey Style. After two hours she had finally gotten to a point that she considered satisfactory. The series featured multiple flips and turns as well as lightning fast aerial strikes, ending in a powerful turning side kick. She drilled the circuit until she was pleased then began to develop Kai’s.

Kai had a difficult time finding a circuit that was even half as aesthetic as Enkii’s. Eventually he gave up on aesthetics and instead opted to rely on pure shock factor. They settled on an eight-part series of strikes that ended with Kai back in his original posture. Enkii couldn’t even see him perform the techniques, rather he appeared to stand completely still as eight visible shockwaves formed around him in sequence. Kai quite liked this effect, so he chose to use it as his circuit.

After Kai had decided on his circuit, the other masters/competitors began to come in waves, each of them developing their own.

Enkii had gone to see Shifu about using her weapon while Kai just sparred Po for a bit.

There were a series of other menial meetings and tasks assigned to the participants that had to be done before the tournament.

By the time night had fallen, Kai was mentally exhausted. The day’s events had happened at such a velocity that he was totally drained. He skipped dinner, heading straight for his bed where he and Enkii enjoyed a deep, dreamless sleep.

**Well there’s chapter five. It’s a bit of a filler/setup chapter with some poorly done romance but being a skilled writer isn’t exactly something I can aspire to be. Fair warning, after the tournament, this story will start to get pretty dark so you may want to strap in. Review. :(**

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


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	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The tournament begins.

**For anyone who actually gives a fuck about this story, I apologize for the long wait on this chapter. A lot of personal shit has gone down over the last few weeks, and I have had trouble finding time to write. Anyways, this chapter is a little rushed and I got lazy when writing the fight scenes. After this chapter, I know exactly where I want to take this story, but I must warn that it will start getting dark pretty soon. I may also entertain the idea of switching POV’s to first person every so often. I hope you can still find some enjoyment in this chapter. Please review.**

**Chapter 6**

Kai was awoken, not by the gong like he was expecting, but instead by the sounds of a large crowd near the palace.

He groaned and rubbed his head, looking out the window. It was only just past twilight, the sun just barely peeking out from beyond the horizon.

Enkii was stirring slightly in his arms, but she still seemed to be sound asleep. He tried to focus on the sound of her purring, instead of on the incessant noise of people shouting and yelling in excitement for the Gonglu Tournament.

_ Oh yeah THAT’S today…  _ Kai thought, the slightest bit of anxiety creeping up.

His anxiety melted, though, as Enkii buried her head into Kai’s lower neck and chest. Kai smiled before planting his head on top of hers, her purring lulling him back into a light sleep.

***BONG***

***BONG*** **  
** **  
** ****

***BONG***

There was the gong, followed by the usual, “Good morning master!”

Kai opened his eyes. He felt only mildly refreshed after he was woken by the crowd. The crowd was even louder now. Clearly they had been allowed to find their seats and set up their stalls.

Enkii was awake and also took notice of the annoying sound.

“This must be a big tournament, huh?” she said sleepily before yawning.

“Well, it is a once in a century ordeal. Non-Kung Fu masters don’t tend to live past seventy or so, so I guess all the hype makes sense.” Kai responded matter-of-factly.

“Centennial or not, people should still have some amount of respect for the residents of the property they’re on.” Enkii replied, a slight bit of irritation evident in her voice.

“I agree fully.” Kai said with a small nod. “Hey, at least if we both win, we can enjoy more of this serenity without the noise.”

Enkii smiled at the thought as she nuzzled her head into Kai’s neck. Kai ran his claw up her spine, causing her to release a satisfying chuff.

They both stood up and went through their morning routine of stretches, before they changed into the more proper uniforms that the palace had provided them.

Kai’s was a long-sleeved shirt that was a deep black with gold trim. Both of the sleeves had a purple dragon coiling down them. His pants were a loose-fitting pair of silk slacks that were the same black as his uniform.

Enkii’s was a navy blue vest with black trim. A pattern of black calligraphy strokes across the front and back. Her pants were the same as Kai’s.

Enkii grabbed a pair of curved daggers that looked wickedly sharp. They emitted a faint blue glow and there were multiple small symbols written across them.

“What are those?” Kai asked, gesturing to the blades.

“These are the Twin Blades of Geyan. These were given to me as a reward for winning the Li Jo Tournament before… before... “ Enkii trailed off.

Kai knew she was reliving some painful memories, so he pushed no more, rather he scooped her up into a loving embrace, rubbing her back comfortingly. She returned the hug with a fierceness that Kai had yet to experience. Though she had tears in her eyes, a smile began to form as she hugged closer to Kai, enjoying the proximity to her mate. 

Suddenly she pulled partially away from Kai and wrapped her arms around his neck. They just stood there for a moment gazing into the other’s eyes. Kai’s held a sort of nervous, confused look where Enkii’s had one of longing. In only a matter of seconds, Enkii couldn’t take it anymore and she pulled Kai into a deep, passionate kiss. Kai stood in shock for a moment. He wondered if this relationship was moving too fast, but he quickly discarded the thought as he pressed forward, his tongue pushing through her lips. Enkii returned the favor, lustfully wrapping her tongue around his. Eventually they pulled away, and Enkii was breathing heavily.

“Th-that was  _ intense _ …” she panted gazing into Kai’s brown eyes, “Where did you learn to do that!?”

Kai chuckled lightly.

“Let’s just say, this ain’t my first rodeo.” Kai said, answering her question.

They went back in for a second kiss, not noticing Tigress opening the door. She stood there in shock as Kai held Enkii’s slender form tightly and Enkii pressed her lips into his.

Their moment of passion was cut short by Tigress clearing her throat. She was trying hard to hide her mischievous smirk, but failing miserably. The pair turned towards her, still in their embrace. Tigress was surprised to be met with looks of annoyance rather than embarrassment. She tried to ignore this as her smirk reappeared.

“Hmm, Looks like I have some leverage to use against you two now.” she said playfully.

“HA! You think we give a fuck if the rest of the people know where mates? Nah, I’m proud to be dating Enkii and I will gladly let everyone know that myself.” Kai shot back.

Enkii nodded her head in agreement.

Tigress stood in the doorway as Kai and Enkii left. When Kai passed her he whispered

“I can't say the same about you and Po though, huh?” Kai smirked evilly as he walked next to Enkii, both of them chuckling at the remark.

Tigress stood there, her eyes wider than dinner plates.

She quickly shook off the feeling of shock as she ran to catch up with the couple. When she got to them she grabbed Kai by his shoulder and yanked him down.

“How do YOU know about that!?” she hissed.

Kai scoffed as he pulled away.

“You and Po aren’t nearly as slick as you think you are. Come on, two nights ago Po wanted to use the bath stall after I was done and as soon as he left YOU followed behind him. There was only one stall left. Deductive reasoning tells me that you and your slam piece had to have used the same bath stall for some uhh…  _ shenanigans _ . That is, unless you mean to tell me that you didn’t go to the bath house.” Kai responded with a smirk.

Tigress merely stood there, unable to think of anything to say. She refused to admit defeat, but Kai seemed to be unbeatable. Usually, if she couldn’t beat someone with her Kung Fu then she would beat them with her mind, and if she couldn’t beat them with her mind then she could normally beat them with Kung Fu, but Kai had her beat in both regards.

Kai put his arm around Enkii and they began to walk towards the kitchen, leaving Tigress in her shock, smirking the whole way.

Once in the kitchen, the other masters greeted them and served them a small, energy packed breakfast of fruit and fish. Once they finished, they led the pair down the palace steps and to the tournament hall. They were brought into a large building with the other competitors in it, practicing their opening kata and warming up for the tournament.

“The tournament starts in around three hours. Just practice your opening or whatever until the time comes. When it does, you’ll hear a loud gong followed by the beating of a drumline. Master Shifu will call out each of your names and when he comes to yours, you will exit that door over there then perform your opening before taking your place on the benches near the fighting platform.” Po said excitedly. “This is going to be awesome!”

Everybody except for Kai began to practice their opening katas, adding the finishing touches. Kai simply hit the heavy bag in the corner as he waited patiently for the tournament to start.

_ “Jab, cross, hook, jab, uppercut, jab, slip, jab, cross, right, hook, leg kick, side kick, jab, cross, head kick, roll, uppercut, slip, jab, jab…”  _ Kai launched devastating combos into an imaginary opponent, getting lost in the motions.

***GOOOOONG***

Kai was shocked back to reality by the starting gong. He then heard Shifu yelling to the crowd outside.

“ _ Greetings citizens of the valley, and welcome to the tenth Centennial Gonglu Tournament! _ ”

The crowd cheered loudly.

“ _ This tournament is a sacred event to determine the greatest warrior on the planet! We have collected sixteen of the best warriors from across the world to pit against each other! ( _ **_I know I said there would be twenty contestants, but I realized that twenty doesn’t work with a bracket)_ ** _ First prize will receive two million yuan as well as the opportunity to live and train as a master of the Jade Palace. Second prize will receive five hundred thousand yuan and a chance to join the Jade Palace masters! Third prize will receive one hundred thousand yuan and a chance to join the masters!” _

More cheers from the crowd.

“ _ So, without further ado! I present to you the warriors of the Gonglu Tournament!” _

The crowd was now deafening as Shifu’s chi enhanced voice boomed over the noise.

“ _ First! Hailing from the Valley of Peace, Tigress, Monkey, Crane, Viper, Mantis, and Po. The Furious Five and the Dragon Warrior!” _

The group came rushing out onto the fighting platform, moving in a complex series of flips and strikes ending with all six of them in their stance next to the others.

Somehow the crowd's cheers grew even louder.

“ _ Next! Hailing from the distant nation of France, the Fatale Emile Lavigne! The ferocious feline solely responsible for overthrowing the tyrant Jeanne III!” _

Some cheers came from the back of the arena as a bright white snow leopard performed a rather generic series of flips and techniques.

“ _ Next! Hailing from Ip Kong, the Emperor's personal guard! Xian Lo Ip!” _

A large water buffalo performed a basic set of flips on the platform, landing next to the other competitors.

“ _ Next! Hailing from Japan, we are graced by the presence of Nomi No Sakaraba! The greatest Judoka to ever live, and the leader of the Makai!” _

A sun bear came out demonstrating different judo forms and releasing a powerful roar.

The crowd cheered again.

“Makai?” Kai asked Enkii.

“They’re a group of warriors that eliminated the Yakuza in Japan.” she answered.

“ _ Next! Hailing from Gongmen City, Masters Storming Ox and Croc! Leaders of the Master’s Council and key players in the fight against Lord Shen!” _

The two masters came onto the platform performing an odd sequence of spins and leaps, landing perfectly in line with all the other competitors, they were met with almost as much applause as the Furious Five.

“ _ Next! Hailing from the Philippines! The Black Blur Andrea Reyes, winner of the International Kali Championship and hero of the Philippines!” _

A black panther sauntered into the arena. They did a couple of interesting moves before arriving next to her fellow competitors.

The audience booed loudly.

“Why are they booing her?” Kai asked as he and Enkii moved closer to the exit. Enkii was now visible to the crowd and it was obviously affecting her.

“Well uh… she uhh… practices Kali which is uhh… heavily associated with that terrorist uhh… group the Qinchai.” Enkii said quickly, stuttering the whole time.

Internally, she was having an anxiety attack. She was not prepared to be in front of a crowd this large and she felt self conscious to a fault.

Kai read her nervousness before wrapping her in a hug and speaking in a calming voice, “Enkii, I can tell that you're nervous. Don’t be. I’m positive you’ll blow this out of the water.”

She hugged him back and took a few deep breaths, calming her nerves to an extent.

“ _ Now! Hailing from the Kirpon Confederacy and wielding the Twin Blades of Geyan! Master Enkii Ulta, the only female victor of the infamous Li Jo Tournament!” _

“You got this.” Kai said reassuringly, rubbing her on the head.

She gave him a quick peck on the lips before rushing out and performing her opener beautifully moving through the series of spins, flips, and strikes flawlessly. She ended in a fierce double palm strike that sent a burst of air into the crowd. She was met with thunderous applause as she took her place next to masters Ox and Croc.

There were only three competitors left in the hall. Kai, a boar, and a wolf.

“ _ Hailing from the islands of Polynesia we have Mui Ka’a’mena  _ ( **Moo-ee Kah-ah-mei-nah** )  _ specialist in Lua, wielder of the Ala Maka Hammer, and savior of Kamehameha!” _

The boar ran out performing what looked to be almost a step by step dance, releasing powerful shouts with each one. 

Kai recalled hearing somewhere that these were called  _ Hakas. _

As the boar finished there were some cheers though they primarily came from a group of boars at the other end of the stands all dressed in clothes made of individual long strands of grass.

“ _ Hailing from Brazil! Ryron Marceo  _ ( **He-ron [roll the r and the o is long]** ) _ , master of Capoeira and protector of King Pedro!” _

The wolf performed an impressive series of spinning and jumping kicks that looked more like a dance than even the Haka.

He was met with very little applause as he took his place by Mui.

“ _ And finally! Last, but certainly not least! Hailing from the Lu Shi village! Kai the Destroyer, vanquisher of the terrifying Qinchai!” _

‘ _ The Destroyer… THAT’S new’ _

Kai walked out slowly. Each step he took he executed a lightning fast punch that sent insanely powerful shockwaves through the air, knocking some people off balance. Many stared at him in awe when he took his place next to Ryron for he didn’t even appear to throw any strikes, yet the shockwaves given off were immense. He stood there with his arms crossed, glaring at the crowd menacingly. He noticed Zhikan in the crowd, a smirk on his face.

The crowd was silent, petrified by awe and pinned under his glare.

“ _ Ladies and gentlemen! The Gonglu Warriors!” _

Shifu gestured to the competitors as the crowd began to cheer again.

The warriors were ushered off to the side of the platform and sat on a large bench as they awaited the first match.

“ _ Our first match will be Master Tigress of the Jade Palace versus Master Enkii of the Kirpon Confederacy!” _

The two tigresses stood from the bench and walked onto the platform. Enkii was clearly nervous again. They took their stances, eying the other, looking for an opening.

“ _ Begin! _ ”

Instantly they pounced, a blur of black and orange the only thing visible on the platform. 

Tigress launched a vicious head kick which Enkii ducked before hitting Tigress with a powerful uppercut. Tigress stumbled back a few meters, spitting blood out of her mouth before moving back into her stance. Enkii was upon her immediately, releasing a fierce roar as she nailed Tigress with combo after combo. Tigress, starting to take damage, quickly hopped back, baiting Enkii to pounce again. When she did, Tigress released a powerful double palm strike that hit Enkii square in the chest, sending her tumbling back ten meters. Enkii was on her feet instantly and blocked every strike sent her way by Tigress. Tigress launched an unexpected oblique kick that sent Enkii off balance before Tigress knocked her to the ground with a spinning heel kick straight to the head, but just before Tigress could finish the knockout, Enkii had sprung to her feet and drawn her blades. Tigress answered in kind, pulling a short sword out from her belt. Enkii was surprisingly adept at using her twin blades as she masterfully parried and countered Tigress’s attacks. Soon, Enkii had turned the tables against Tigress, completely disarming her. Enkii pounced and with extreme speed placed a series of small lacerations on different parts of Tigresses body. Each cut caused a part of her body to go limp, until she dropped to the floor.

The crowd cheered and the drums boomed louder as Shifu came down and raised Enkii’s paw. Enkii walked back to the bench beaming as Tigress was hauled to the medical ward.

Kai rubbed her head affectionately.

“What was that technique you used to finish the fight?” Kai asked.

“That was Ninzhi, an old practice I was taught when I first learned how to use twin blades. It is essentially just cutting key muscles and nerves to paralyze your opponent temporarily.” Enkii explained.

Kai nodded his head as he struck a few points on her body to loosen her muscles and reduce pain.

“ _ Our next matchup will be the Fatale Emile of France versus Master Monkey of the Jade Palace!” _

The snow leopard and the langur both jumped onto the platform and moved into their stances.

“ _ Begin! _ ”

Monkey was instantly caught off guard by the speed the leopard appeared before him. She landed a few minor blows to Monkey before moving away and taking a defensive posture. 

Big mistake.

Monkey instantly found an opening. He delivered a devastating up-kick that knocked the feline out cold.

More cheers as Monkey’s hand was raised and he walked back to the bench.

The feline woke up with a dazed look as she realized what was going on. She held the bridge of her nose in disappointment as she was guided into the medical ward.

Monkey was met with pats on the back and words of encouragement by the five while Shifu announced the next matchup.

“ _ Next, we have Kai the Destroyer facing off against the Dragon Warrior himself!” _

Kai still wasn’t sure if he actually liked his new title, to him it sounded just cheesy and somewhat cliche.

The crowd’s cheers were immense when he mentioned Po.

_ “Good to know who’s the crowd favorite…” _ Kai thought sardonically.

The pair hopped onto the fighting platform, the crowd still roaring.

Po took a second to channel his chi into his paws, hoping to actually win this bout.

Kai merely stood with his arms crossed like usual.

“ _ Begin!” _

Suddenly Po hopped back and raised his arms. A huge golden dragon appeared behind him before flying into the sky and disappearing, bathing the sky in a warm gold.

They heard many ‘oohs’ and ‘aahs’ from the crowd.

Something about Po looked different now. His posture was significantly improved, and his face was set in a peaceful determination. A faint golden hue emanated from his eyes.

Kai chose to humor this. Instead of ending the fight quickly, he thought he would put on a show for the viewers.

He chuckled lightly as he uncrossed his arms and moved into a unique stance. He stood straight and brought his fists up near his head.

Po just looked at him calmly and closed his eyes, taking a deep breath as his hands began to glow.

Suddenly Kai had appeared in front of Po. The force of his rapid movement sending a powerful gust of wind into the audience stands.

The crowd went deathly silent.

Po opened his eyes in shock. He quickly launched a jab at Kai. Kai dodged easily before grabbing his outstretched arm and pulling him into a shoulder toss.

Po hit the ground with a heavy thud before springing back to his feet. He instantly sent a side kick at Kai, aimed at his abdomen. Kai allowed it to hit him, and was genuinely surprised at the amount of power behind it.

Kai was sent skidding to the other end of the arena and almost fell off of the platform.

The crowd erupted with cheers as Kai spat a bit of blood out of his mouth.

He noticed something unusual, there was a rather significant amount of pain coming from the area the kick had impacted. His eyes widened with disbelief. Po may have actually broken some of his ribs.

He looked up at the Panda who was now walking towards him with a bit of a smug smile on his lips.

Kai grinned to himself. Playtime was now over.

“I never thought you possessed such power based off of our sparring sessions.” Kai said casually.

“What can I say? I’m full of surprises.” Po retorted with a smirk.

Kai bolted forward to meet Po.

They began to trade strikes, though Kai was still holding back.

After a bit Kai grew impatient and decided to end the fight right then.

He dodged Po’s palm strike and delivered a powerful overhand right that landed square on Po’s face. The strike sent Po flying to the other end of the platform, leaving a ditch in his path. Po fell backwards off the platform, totally unconscious. 

The only cheers in the crowd came from an ecstatic Zhikan, hooting and hollering over his brother’s victory.

Kai moved to where Po was beginning to come to. He offered his paw and Po accepted.

“I think you fractured my skull.” Po said in a daze.

Kai chuckled as Shifu came forward and declared him the victor, doing his best to raise Kai’s arm.

Po was led to the medical ward.

Kai returned to the bench where he sat down next to Enkii. She was looking at him with a mixture of concern and pride.

“Are you ok?” she asked quietly.

“Yeah, I think he broke a few of my ribs and gave me some bruises, but I should be fine for my next match.” he responded. “Oh, I may have also broken some of the knuckles on my right paw.”

He brought his paw to his face to examine. He just shrugged as he tore off a piece of fabric to use as padding for his knuckles.

“I’m not surprised, that punch was incredible.” Enkii said as she leaned up against him.

“You know what the best part is?” Kai asked.

“What?” 

“I only hit him with maybe ten percent of what I’m capable of.” he said proudly.

“I’m still not surprised. I’m pretty sure if you hit him full force he wouldn’t be alive.” Enkii smiled at him. “I’m just happy that you restrained yourself. That fight was a lot of fun to watch.” 

She gave him a peck on the cheek while they awaited the next matchup.

“ _ Up next! Master Viper versus Master Storming Ox!” _

These two masters were both crowd favorites because they both aided in stopping Lord Shen. As such, deafening cheers filled the arena once more.

The masters squared off. 

Kai sat there intrigued by this fight. These two masters couldn’t have more different styles. This fight would either be incredibly boring or the best one of the day.

The crowd watched on in anticipation.

“ _ Begin!” _

The two masters were immediately engaged in odd combat. Master Ox would attempt to bash the snake with his horns, or land a grab that he could choke her out with. Viper was moving fluidly doing her best to tail whip and thrust the ox. Neither of them were making real ground on the other, and it was starting to look bleak for it being entertaining. They continued like this for the whole fifteen minute duration of the match. 

Finally the ending gong rang out and Master Ox was declared winner by points. Neither of the fighters were injured so they just went back to the bench.

The crowd was incredibly bored after that “fight”. Kai had nearly dozed off and Enkii was completely spaced out.

“ _ Our next matchup will be Master Ryron of versus Master Crane!” _

Shifu’s chi-enhanced voice jolted everyone back to reality.

The wolf and Crane moved onto the platform. Ryron looked quite nervous. 

_ “He should be nervous, he’s in a completely new environment and is about to fight one of the most revered Kung Fu Masters on the planet.”  _ Kai thought.

“ _ Begin!” _

The fight was on. Ryron moved into a low crouch while Crane took off into the skies, which were still golden. Ryron tried his best to keep track of where Crane went, but the avian masterfully used the sun to obscure his opponents vision until it was too late. Crane came diving out of nowhere, landing a brutal kick in the wolf’s abdomen. Ryron backed up a bit, clutching his stomach as Crane took off again. He dived and tried to hit Ryron again, but the wolf was ready this time. From his low crouch, Ryron performed a crazy spinning kick that was unfamiliar to even Zhikan and Shifu. The kick landed, knocking Crane’s hat off and sending him tumbling a few meters away.

Crane stood up, breathing heavily. His neck was bent a bit out of shape. He moved into a fighting stance, realizing that he could no longer take advantage of his flight. 

They began to circle each other. Both looking for any sort of opening. Ryron’s nerves had obviously disappeared as he was now solely focused on his opponent. Ryron suddenly advanced and moved in a flowy dance of sorts. 

To the untrained eye, it seemed as though he was just dancing, but every warrior in the arena knew different. Each move was a powerful strike disguised as a dance move. Crane caught on pretty quickly and began to block the kicks rapidly coming his way. Every strike Crane would send towards the wolf would be dodged by means of flips and spins.

Crane started to grow tired as his opponent seemed perfectly fine. The wolf finally landed a fierce kick to the skull of Crane. He was knocked out cold.

The crowd cheered in a mixture of shock and excitement. This match had been quite the spectacle.

Shifu raised Ryron’s paw.

He wasted no time in announcing the next match.

“ _ Next! We have Mui Ka’a’mena of versus Master Sakaraba!” _

The boar and the bear walked forward and hopped onto the platform. Nomi wore a strange white outfit. Kai recognized it as a Judo gi as he had one himself. He was mildly impressed to see the red belt the sun bear wore.

_ ‘He’s a Judo Grandmaster huh…’  _ Kai thought as he grew more excited.

Enkii noticed his excitement and decided to inquire, “Why are you so excited? I don’t see what looks particularly special about this match.”

Kai deadpanned at her before answering, “Do you not know what a Judoka is? He is a Grandmaster of his martial art, Judo. All of the tosses I perform are Judo techniques.”

Enkii understood immediately. Kai was excited because this match would be right within his expertise.

The two opponents faced each other.

“ _ Begin” _

The boar lunged forward. Apparently he’d never studied Judo before because if there is one thing you DON’T want to do to a Judoka it would be to lunge at him.

Sakaraba shot forward, clinching Mui tight before stepping through and finishing the toss. The poor boar never stood a chance as he went plummeting towards the ground. He landed with a thud. The place he had impacted was covered in a spiderweb of cracks.

Shifu immediately jumped down and felt the boar’s pulse. When he knew Mui was still alive he raised Nomi’s paw to the cheers of the audience.

Kai held a wide grin on his face as he watched the sun bear move back to the bench.

“I’m happy he won that.” Kai said happily.

“Why?” Enkii asked.

“Because that means that I may have a chance to fight him.” Kai responded.

Enkii just hummed in response, laying her head on his shoulder.

“ _ Next! Xian Lo Ip versus Master Mantis!” _

The water buffalo stomped his way onto the platform, the mantis zipping around not too far behind.

“ _ Begin!” _

Mantis moved at lightning speed, delivering a series of Dim Mak strikes, leaving his opponent completely paralyzed. 

The water buffalo just flopped forward comically.

“Some imperial guard huh?” Kai joked.

Enkii chuckled a bit.

Shifu raised Mantis’s claw thingy as the crowd went insane.

Mantis strutted back to the bench with a smug look on his face.

“Fastest knockout so far. No biggie.” he said, continuing to strut to his spot.

The rest of the five just rolled their eyes at the bug.

“ _ Finally, to wrap up the Preliminary Matches! Andrea the Black Blur versus Master Croc!” _

The crowd booed at the panther and cheered for the croc.

Andrea ignored the boos as she drew her short swords and moved into her stance. Master Croc drew his spiked mace and did the same.

“ _ Begin!” _

It was instantly obvious that Master Croc stood no chance. Though he did hold his own, the panther obviously out classed him in armed combat by a long shot.

Andrea moved swiftly and fluidly, parrying and slicing the whole time.

Perhaps if it was an unarmed fight then the croc may have won, but it wasn’t.

Master Croc eventually succumbed to his injuries and Shifu raised Andreas' paw.

Of course, she was met with a wave of ‘boos’ from the crowd as she moped back to the bench.

“ _ That will conclude our Preliminary Rounds! The finals will begin at three o’clock!” _

The fighters all got up from the bench and moved off to do various activities.

Kai went straight for the palace, hoping to use the couple free hours to aid his wounds. 

He arrived rather quickly, Enkii close behind. He went straight for his room to grab some bandages and a small bit of 

Kangfu Tea.

He began to boil some water in the kitchen as he grabbed three of the dark red tea leaves and tossed them in.

“What are you making?” Enkii asked, causing Kai to jump a little.

“I didn’t notice you following me. Anyways, I’m making some Kangfu Tea. It basically increases overall blood flow and makes basic healing faster. My hope is that it will at least get rid of my bruises before the finals.” he responded.

Enkii sighed, “Lift up your shirt.”

Kai just stared at her, a bit confused, “Why?”

“Just let me look at your injuries, the Kirpon Confederacy has made huge progress in medicine. I’m almost positive I have some way to help.”

Kai just sighed and lifted up his shirt. He was surprised to see the angry purple of the bruise easily visible, even through his dark brown fur.

Enkii moved forward and gently began to feel his ribcage. She wouldn’t admit it to Kai, but she quite enjoyed feeling his muscular form, suppressing a purr as she continued.

She made a second sweep, pushing a bit harder into Kai’s skin this time. Suddenly she stopped and Kai winced. Her eyes widened, she felt a warm, thick liquid on her paw.

She brought her paw to her eyes, only to panic a bit when she saw that it was crimson and smelled of iron.

She put her paw back on the same spot and pressed harder, warranting a pained grunt from Kai as well as a gasp from Enkii. 

“Y-your rib is… completely broken.” She felt around a bit more, finding two more broken ribs, “This one,” she brought her hand back to the location where the blood came from, “I believe has partially stabbed through your abdomen.”

She bent down and parted his fur where the injury was. Sure enough, there was a centimeter long gash with a sharp white object sticking maybe a millimeter out.

She looked up at Kai with concern.

“You can’t fight like this. It’s too dangerous.” she said.

“And why is that?” Kai asked, raising an eyebrow.

“If you get hit in the same spot or land funny, it could cause this rib or any of the other snapped ribs to puncture a lung or worse, your heart. I could help speed up this process, but even with advanced medicine this would take multiple months to heal.” she sighed as she stood back up.

Kai looked at her for a moment before he began to prod at the gash. Enkii tried to stop him, but he just held up his hand to stop her. She watched with concern as Kai began to apply more and more force to each of his prods until his rib had moved back in place. He howled in pain and Enkii rushed towards him. Kai stopped her before downing his Kangfu tea, within minutes his bruise had all but disappeared and the gash had scabbed over. He prodded the two other ribs back into position, each one prompting him to wince a bit.

“Enkii, what types of medicine do you have that may help with this?” Kai asked, gesturing to his midsection. Despite being put back in place, his ribs were still broken.

Enkii hesitantly walked over to their room where she grabbed a silk sac with assorted medical supplies. She hurried back to the kitchen where Kai had bandaged his knuckles and disinfected a few of the smaller cuts and scrapes on his body.

“Here, rub this on the afflicted area, it will relax your muscles and increase blood flow to the area.” She handed him a jar of white paste which Kai rubbed a good amount of onto his midsection. The effects were immediate, his abs softened and relaxed and he was relieved from a significant amount of discomfort as the muscles no longer put pressure on his ribs.

“This, when drinken, will cause a small membrane to form between bones that should keep them in place, but please exercise caution, these membranes are not very resilient and will break EASILY.” She handed him a bottle of yellow-ish liquid. He downed it quickly.

Kai stood up from his seat and stretched a little. He was mildly annoyed by the pain that emanated from his midsection, but it wasn’t enough to be a real bother. He smiled at his tiger before rubbing her head.

She still looked at him with worry, but it lessened a bit with the affection he gave her. 

Kai began to move out of the kitchen, Enkii walking beside him. They made their way back to the arena just in time for the three o’clock gong.

***GOOOOONG***

“ _ Citizens of the Valley! Welcome to the quarter finals of the Centennial Gonglu Tournament!” _

Wasting no time, Kai and Enkii ran to the bench just as Shifu announced the first match.

“ _ Our first match will be Master Mantis versus Master Monkey!” _

The audience, now reinvigorated, cheered loudly for the two Masters as they approached the platform, glaring at each other playfully.

They faced each other and got into their respective stance.

“You’re going down, green bean!” Monkey hollered, smirking.

“In your dreams golden boy! This will go just like all of our sparring matches except I can use nerve attacks!” Mantis retorted, boasting a playful smirk of his own.

“ _ Begin!” _

The battle started off as a competitive, serious bout, but ended up in what was mostly just an insult battle. Insults like “inbred banana rider” and “lazy, green pincer face” being launched left and right. The crowd was mostly just paying attention to the verbal jousting and had completely forgotten about the actual fighting that was still going on, albeit to a much lesser degree. Eventually, the match was called and Monkey was announced as the winner. The two jokers walked off stage, chuckling with one another as they continued their light banter.

“That was…  _ unique _ .” Kai said, slightly confused. In the four days he’s been at the Jade Palace, he never knew that Monkey and Mantis could be so…  _ colorful…  _ with their insults. Some of the insults even made Tigress chuckle, whether because they were actually funny or just because of how unexpected they were.

“Y-yeah…” Enkii responded, also confused.

“ _ Next up, for our quarter finals… Kairos the Destroyer versus Master Storming Ox!” _

“Please be careful.” Enkii pleaded, grabbing Kai’s paw as he stood up.

He gave her a reassuring look and squeezed her paw before hopping onto the platform.

He landed with a thump, before pinning the bovine that stood before him with a terrifying glare.

“ _ Begin!” _

Kai decided he would heed Enkii’s word and end the fight quickly before he could take any more damage. 

The crowd gasped as Kai appeared behind Master Ox. He moved too fast for them to see. The ox didn’t even have time to process what happened when Kai hit him with three nerve strikes, paralyzing him completely.

Kai was announced as the winner and the crowd was silent with shock.

When he got back to the bench, he rubbed Enkii on the head.

“I told you I’d be fine.” he said teasingly.

She looked up at him with a smile and pulled him into her, nuzzling her head into his slightly puffier neck fur, “You can’t ask me to not worry about my boyfriend, that’s like asking the trees not to shed their leaves.”

The couple hadn’t noticed the surprised expressions from the Furious Five and Po. 

Mantis chuckled a bit, “Haha, I really am a pro at spotting secret couples huh!?” The five all recalled him having his suspicions about Tigress and Po as well as Kai and Enkii.

Tigress, who had just been healed, turned her head to glare at Mantis ‘ _ So HE was the one who first figured it out. I’ll have to pay him back during sparring.’ _

Viper continued to look at the couple incredulously, “I don’t think they’re a ‘secret’ couple, Mantis.”

Mantis shrugged, “Whatever, I’m still the best ba-byyyyy!” 

The others just rolled their eyes and concentrated on the next match.

“ _ Next up! Master Sakaraba versus Master Ryron!” _

The sun bear faced the wolf, piercing into his soul with his glare. Once he saw the slightest hesitation in the wolves eyes he knew he had already won. ‘ _ Checkmate _ ’

“ _ Begin!”  _

The match was ended swiftly as Ryron foolishly kicked high. The sun bear easily caught his leg and used it to pull the wolf closer to him before sweeping his other leg and delivering a powerful hammer fist, knocking the lupine out.

Kai stood up from his seat in excitement, almost cheering before looking around at the confused looks the other fighters gave him, much to his chagrin. He sat back down, slightly embarrassed, and put his stony face back on, hoping to hide as much of hi embarrassment as possible.

“ _ To conclude the quarter finals… Master Enkii versus Andrea the Black Blur!” _

Kai gave Enkii a gentle push and a rub on the back to ease her anxiety. The panther simply stared at Enkii with a bored expression.

“ _ Begin!” _

The match started off competitive, Andrea opting to use her blades right off the bat while Enkii was only using her claws and limbs. Enkii dodged and weaved masterfully, avoiding every strike that came her way and delivering quite a few of her own. The match continued on like this until Andrea managed to land a cut on Enkii’s cheek, stunning her and leaving her open for a powerful turning side kick.

The crowd gasped as Enkii went tumbling to the edge of the platform, almost falling off. Kai merely watched on with a wide grin, he somehow felt like he knew exactly what was going to happen next.

“What are you smiling about!?” Tigress asked the bear incredulously. She had taken quite the liking to Enkii as they could relate to each other very well, “Your girlfriend just got hurt and almost lost!”

Kai chuckled, “You’ll see.”

They turned their attention back to the fight just in time to see Enkii standing up with a similar grin on her face. They watched as she drew both of her daggers and began to approach the panther.

The panther did her best to attack Enkii, but the tigress was just too fast and precise. The gap in skill was painfully obvious as Enkii concluded the match by lacerating several parts of Andrea’s body, leaving her unable to fight.

Kai turned to Tigress and laughed at the look on her face, “What’d I tell you?”

Tigress looked back at him, her eyes wide. She looked back at the platform and watched Enkii get her paw raised. When the other tigress got back to the bench, she was greeted with a ‘congratulations’ from Tigress as well as a hug from Kai. She accepted both graciously and planted a sloppy kiss on Kai’s lips.

The couple just smiled at each other before sitting down again, Enkii resting her head on his shoulder and talking to Tigress.

“ _ Now for the semi-finals!” _

A wave of cheers came from the audience as Shifu announced this.

“ _ Our first match will be… Master Monkey versus Master Sakaraba!” _

The usual drill of hopping onto the platform occurred and the two fighters instantly took their stances.

“ _ Begin!” _

The match was instantly entertaining as Sakaraba’s more grappling based style was perfectly countered by Monkey’s acrobatic striking based style and vice versa.

“Who do you think is gonna win this one?” Mantis asked, hopping onto Kai’s shoulder.

“I really don’t know, but I kind of want Master Sakaraba to win.” Kai responded.

Mantis looked at him with bewilderment, “Why?” 

“Well for one, Monkey doesn’t really serve to gain anything from a top three finish seeing as he’s already a master at the Jade Palace, and besides, my style has a lot in common with his. It would be cool to be able to take him on in the finals.” he explained.

“Hey! That’s only if you beat me!” Enkii shot in, jokingly glaring at Kai.

“That won’t be a problem.” Kai said bluntly.

Enkii just pouted and leaned back on his shoulder as the match ended with Sakaraba landing a massive Osoto Gari and finishing Monkey off with an armbar. 

“Looks like you got your wish.” Mantis said blankly.

Kai smiled and chuckled quietly, though he stopped when he realized what the next match was.

“ _ Finally, the last match of the semi-finals! Kai the Destroyer versus Master Enkii!” _

The couple stood up and walked, somewhat solemnly onto the platform.

‘ _ Perhaps if I just choke her out I can minimize pain and damage and still end the fight quickly’  _ Kai thought as they faced each other.

Obviously they were both averse to the idea of hurting or trying to hurt the other, but they both brushed the thought aside and just focused on winning.

***POV Enkii***

My anxiety had reached a boiling point.

Of course, in my previous matches I was nervous, but Kai always found a way to calm me down. Now, however, I was facing him in a fight, and he is far more formidable than any of my previous opponents.

I readied myself. For some reason, there was a shred of hope in my heart that said ‘you can beat him’ and that allowed me to keep my composure for the most part.

I looked into his eyes and tried to read them to no avail.

He wore the blankest expression I have ever seen and thus was entirely unreadable.

‘ _ Damn he’s good’ _

_ “Begin!” _

Suddenly he vanished from my sight. I was totally biffed at how fast he was as I stood there, confused until I felt a light breath on my neck causing a chill to run down my spine and my fur to stand on end.

“Behind you.” he teased playfully, tapping me on the shoulder.

Before I could even respond I was in a tight chokehold.

‘ _ Huh… he’s choking me out to avoid hurting me as much as possible. Wow, how did I end up with someone so… perfect?’ _

If there was any doubt that I was in love before, there wasn’t now.

Within just a few seconds my vision had begun to fade and I tried to wriggle out but his arms were like steel bars. Trying to move his body proved futile as well as if I was trying to pull a mountain.

I started to go weak and only got weaker by the second until everything was black.

***POV Kai***

It pained me to some degree to choke my mate out, but I figured it was fully preferable to  _ actually _ hurting her.

Shifu came forward as I gently laid my sleeping feline down. He attempted to raise my paw again, but failed and just declared me winner with his voice.

The medical staff were about to move Enkii out on a stretcher, but I stopped them, “I only choked her out, she should be fine and will most likely wake up within a few seconds.”

“But, Master Kai, she may have sustained a neck injury or brain damage!” one of the medics said nervously.

I growled. How dare he ever suggest that I would so much as scratch Enkii (sparring doesn’t count).

Glaring at him menacingly, I spoke, “Listen, bud, I’m a relatively forgiving guy, and I’m willing to forget that you just said that if you allow me to take care of Miss Ulta, but I’d hate to imagine what could happen if you didn’t.” My voice had become a full snarl now, obviously scaring the shit out of the poor medic.

Of course, I wouldn’t actually hurt him, but the threat had to be made for me to take care of my lover.

“O-of c-course M-master.” the medics scampered away in fear as I lifted Enkii off the ground and hoisted her person onto my shoulder.

This action was met by a series of ‘aaaws’ and ‘that’s so cutes’ as I began to walk towards the bench. This was annoying. The very concept of being called cute disturbed me, but being called cute by hundreds of people in front of a large crowd was downright mortifying. 

I managed to keep my cool, and just glanced up at Zhikan in the stands. He had a huge grin plastered on his face and his arms were crossed.

I turned back and continued walking taking note of the look Shifu was giving me. It was  _ odd  _ to say the least.

‘ _ Perhaps there’s a reason Po and Tigress keep their relationship a secret.’ _

I made it back to the bench only slightly flustered as I sat down and laid Enkii across the vacant space, resting her head on my thigh.

I began to stroke her fur subconsciously as I awaited her waking.

***POV Enkii***

I began to regain consciousness, noticing that my head was resting on something firm yet soft. I also felt the calming sensation of someone rubbing my head and ears. I almost went back to sleep until I noticed the loud cheering and I remembered where I was.

I opened my eyes to see Kai looking down on me calmly, rubbing my head and ears with care. When he saw my eyes open he smiled.

I sat up slowly and my head throbbed a bit. I groaned and clutched the spot where it hurt.

“Yeah… sorry about that. After having your brain deprived of blood for so long, the feeling of it returning tends to be painful.” Kai said apologetically.

I looked at him and smiled back as the throb started to subside. I snuggled up next to him and rested my head on his shoulder. Headache or not, this was Heaven.

**Woo, 8k words done. So I tried out the whole POV switch thing though it wasn’t particularly eventful. Please tell me if you liked it or if I should stop doing it. The final two matches will take place at the beginning of Chapter 7 though they will be quick like all of the other ones. I may also start giving you songs to listen to to capture the feel for certain scenes seeing as I’m not really a gifted writer. As always, feel free to PM me any ideas or criticisms and please review. I’ll see you in the next one.**

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  



	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

**Gonglu Champion**

Seeth stood before the Cauldron of the Cosmos, gazing into its visions of the future.

“Morhak!” he yelled.

A large snake came out of the darkness. Obviously disgruntled.

Unfortunately, Seeth wasn’t created with the gift of divination and thus had to summon one of the Satiens, who did.

“Tell me what you see.”

The snake gazed into the cauldron calmly before turning around.

“Kairos will return.” he said blankly.

“What!?” Seeth yelled again.

“Kairos will return! Do I need to spell it out for you? Now leave me alone. I have shit to do.” 

An edge of irritation had appeared in Morhak’s voice. He knew that Seeth would never hurt a lesser god and especially not the one who commanded destiny.

Seeth ran in front of him, “I’m sorry for yelling, it’s just… this is a BIG deal. Now is there any way I could alter this course?” he asked more calmly, though his anger was still apparent.

“No.”

Seeth couldn’t help but flare up in anger again, “WHAT DO YOU MEAN NO!? I AM SEETH, THE SUPREME COMMANDER OF THE UNIVERSE! VESSEL OF ETERNITY! MY KNOWLEDGE IS INFINITE! MY WISDOM IS VAST! MY POWER IS UNMATCHED!”

“But the universe will never bend to your will, for something greater, far greater, has willed it so.” Morhak responded. Seeth knew who he spoke of, Azarok, the Great One, “Not even I can change the flow of destiny so easily, and if I were to, the problems it would cause could be catastrophic.”

Seeth’s anger was replaced by disappointment. He pinched his brow.

“Fine, you may leave.”

“Thank you.”

Morhak left, leaving a flustered Seeth behind, pacing the room. He began to think about how he could alter destiny. He, Mynr, and Enkii built the universe from the ground up. How could he possibly not know how to alter it?

“Damn it.” he whispered to himself, “Why couldn’t Kai just listen to me? Everything would have been so much… easier.”

A pang of guilt shot through his soul. He still hadn’t gotten over his betrayal of his brother.

He moved back to the cauldron and willed it to show him Earth. Kai was sitting there, holding a tiger in his arms.

‘ _ Huh, that tiger looks just like Enkii, but orange and black rather than white and gold.’ _

Suddenly an idea began to form in his head. Perhaps he could create a vessel for his power that was just strong enough to kill Kai, but weak enough to be unable to destroy Earth. The only reason he didn’t go down himself is because his mere presence would scar and hurt his precious lifeforms.

Seeth frowned to himself and called Morhak back in. Morhak came back looking annoyed.

“What?” the snake hissed.

“I have created a being that will harbor some of my power. I need you to will her destiny to be the end of Kairos.” though the thought of casting his brother into oblivion was difficult to bear, he knew it had to be done. ‘ _ For the greater good’ _ he told himself.

“Seeth, by now you should know this, I can’t create a destiny for one being that interferes with that of another. Those things must happen  _ naturally _ .” he explained, shaking his head.

“That doesn’t matter. Just set it up so that she will interact with Kai at some point.”

“Okaaaay.” Morhak replied, raising his hands in defeat, “I highly doubt it will end well though.”

The snake left as Seeth sighed.

He willed himself back to his quarters in the Divine Residency and sat at his desk, deep in thought. He wished he could allow Kai to move on to the afterlife, but the risk that came with giving him his soul back was just too great.

He found the only gift he had ever been given, an Enkiron Crystal. The single most precious item in the universe. Despite their differences, Kai had gone out of his way to obtain this. If the universe was to end, this would be the final remnant, the only real proof that it ever actually existed.

He fidgeted with the crystal as a memory came back.

***Seeth’s memory***

“Brother, please listen to me. The universe we have worked so hard on, you wish to bring to its end?” Seeth pleaded.

“And allow room for it to start anew. Worry not, brother, I shall not end this universe anytime soon. But balance must be maintained.” Kai responded, gazing upon the universe.

“But… it can be maintained without ending the universe.”

“You know full well that isn’t true. Did you learn nothing from your time with Azarok?” Kai asked, turning around, “I know you understand the weight that doing something like this can hold.” he pointed to a symbol on his forearm. The meaning of existence, “As I said, balance must be preserved at ALL costs.”

“WHAT DO YOU KNOW OF BALANCE!? You are merely a destroyer, a universal plague that ends everything that’s good!” Seeth shouted. He was hurt by Kai’s words, by his cold indifference to the well being of this universe.

“Perhaps you are correct, brother. Perhaps Entropy is a plague to the universe, but plagues bring down the population and allow room for growth. Plagues make everyone stronger and better prepared for the next one.” he sighed, “Brother, I know it’s hard to accept when your commanding force is Eternity, the very idea that things can last forever, but you can’t let it blind you. In much the same way as death being a part of life, the end is just a part of the journey. We immortals will live beyond the end, and you will seed all forms of creation in the new universe.”

Seeth glared at Kai, “You disgust me.”

He walked away, leaving Kai to his thoughts.

He arrived at his quarters and sat at his desk releasing a deep sigh.

Hoping to distract himself from the conversation he just had, he summoned a bowl of spicy noodles. It was his favorite dish and it could usually relieve his mind of stress, if only temporarily. He began eating, doing his best to enjoy his dish. Of course, he didn’t NEED to eat just like how he doesn’t NEED to exercise or he doesn’t NEED to sleep, but he did all of these things because he enjoyed them, and they kept his mind off of the stress that accompanied being a Oortien (Greater God). He grabbed his Menkal Tome and opened it to the page for Earth.

He watched as the Satien (Lesser God) Oogway fought against an ox who was attempting to become a god by stealing chi. Seeth had sent Oogway, the God of Life to Earth to find a person worthy of becoming a Satien. They always needed new people to help out around the cosmos so recruiting missions like these weren’t all that uncommon.

He continued to eat his noodles and watch the fight as he let his mind clear. Oogway was obviously not using anywhere close to his full power yet was still beating the ox. Eventually Oogway banished him to the spirit realm and Seeth could feel another presence arrive at the gate of the residency.

Seeth chuckled to himself and finished up his meal. His mind now clear, he began to formulate a plan. He wished he didn’t have to hurt Kairos, but he needed to. For the greater good.

He stood from his desk and moved to the main hall of the residency, beginning to look for someone.

“Ahh, Mynr. I’ve been looking for you.” Seeth said.

“For what might I ask?” a white wolf responded.

“We must organize a team. We need to venture into the Astral Frontier and seek out the Spark of Life.”

‘ _ For the greater good’ _

“Hmm. I see you wish to finally save the universe from Kai.” Mynr replied with a smile, “I’ll get that team ready.”

(300 years later)

**[|Gehrman, The First Hunter - Bloodborne OST| Plays]**

Seeth stood before Kai and Enkii, the spark of life floating behind him.

Kai was bound by bright white chains coming from somewhere deep in the cosmos.

“Brother, please stop this madness, just accept the compromise and live on in peace.” Seeth pleaded.

Kai looked up at him calmly, “It is my duty to preserve balance in the universe, I will NEVER abandon that. I’m afraid the only way it can happen is this way.”

Enkii looked at him in horror, “Kai, please-”

“Enkii, my love, if this is the way it must be, then it is the way it shall be.” Kai said, his expression becoming more somber, “If it’s any comfort, I enjoyed the six billion years we had together. I was truly happy the whole while.” Kai smiled at her sadly before facing Seeth again.

Seeth looked at him with anguish, still conflicted.

“Kai, really it doesn’t have to b-”

“You're wrong! Don’t try to feed me any of that bullshit! You allowed your emotions to blind you and chose to put the universe at risk! Unless you’ve had a sudden change of heart, I would end this quickly before the universe grows anymore unstable!” 

Seeth’s face changed, now resolute.

Enkii had tears running down her face as she could only watch Seeth take the Spark of Life into his body.

He began to glow a color none of them had ever seen before. He rose off the ground, his eyes now glowing white and blue streaks running across his face. His ascension into omnipotence was complete, now he could see everything as if he were Azarok. He looked down at Kai one final time as a singular tear rolled down his face.

“Farewell, brother.” 

There was an enormous blast of light and Kai was no more.

Enkii collapsed to her knees, wailing in agony, “Send me with him.”

Seeth looked at her in shock, “Enkii I-I can’t do-”

“SEND! ME! WITH! HIM!” she screamed in a mixture of rage and sadness.

Seeth looked at her sadly as another flash of light overtook their vision.

He was lowered to the ground as the Spark of Life separated from him and disappeared, finding its place in the Astral Frontier once more. He stood there, painfully alone before collapsing on the ground, weeping.

“Is this truly what you want?” a black and gold tiger approached from behind, placing a paw on his shoulder.

“I did what I must, Faokan”

‘ _ For the greater good’ _

***Present Day***

Seeth found himself gazing at the crystal with a comforting paw on his shoulder. He looked up to see Faokan, Goddess of Destruction standing above him looking concerned. He sighed and set the crystal down, once more closing the lid on those painful memories. As he stood, he wrapped his arms around the feline’s waist, pulling her into an embrace.

“You still love me, right?” he asked as he placed his head on top of hers.

“Of course I do.” she responded nuzzling into his neck fur.

“Then that’s all I need.”

***Back at the Jade Palace Arena***

“ _ Now at last it is time for the FINALS! To determine third place, our penultimate match, Master Enkii versus Master Monkey!” _

“You’ve got this.” Kai rubbed Enkii’s head one last time as she stood and jumped onto the platform.

Monkey readied himself, his face transfixed in concentration. 

“ _ Begin!” _

Surprisingly, Monkey was the primary aggressor of this bout, being the first to lunge at Enkii. She sidestepped and grabbed his tail, using it to throw him to the ground. Enkii immediately capitalized by attempting to land a hammer-fist, but Monkey rolled out of the way causing her to hit the platform, cracking it slightly. Monkey got to his feet and was instantly throwing strikes. Enkii managed to block most of these, but took a few hits to the face. Once Monkey broke his rhythm of strikes, Enkii delivered a fierce sidekick that sent Monkey flying off of the platform.

“ _ Ladies and gentlemen! You’re third place competitor!” _ Shifu gestured at Enkii who bowed to the audience before moving to the area Monkey fell and helping him up.

“Welcome to the Jade Palace Enkii!” Monkey said with a grin, accepting her paw.

“I look forward to working with you guys.”

They moved back to the bench where Enkii was met with massive congratulations from everyone.

“ _ NOW! THE MOMENT YOU HAVE ALL BEEN WAITING FOR! THE FINAL MATCH OF THE GONGLU TOURNAMENT! KAI THE DESTROYER VERSUS MASTER SAKARABA!” _

The audience somehow grew even louder and Kai could just barely make out the cheers of encouragement from Zhikan.

Sakaraba walked onto the platform calmly, bowing before he entered the ring.

Kai just jumped on and faced Sakaraba down. Suddenly he tore off his proper clothes to reveal a Judo Gi beneath, a black belt with eight stripes around his waist.

Sakaraba looked at him and grinned.

“Ahh, you wish to have a Judo bout I see. Very well, I shall gladly humor this.” he said reading himself.

“ _ Begin!” _

Instantly they were locked in a clinch, fighting for whatever grips they could get. Suddenly Sakaraba hopped around and hip-tossed Kai.

Kai landed flat on his back as Sakaraba stood back up, “Ippon.” he said teasingly.

Kai smirked before spinning around and wrapping up Sakaraba’s legs to perform a perfect de la riva sweep, landing the Judoka flat on his back where Kai promptly moved to full mount.

“Let’s see if your ne waza (ground game) is as good as your nage waza (throws/standing game).” Kai teased, moving into an armbar attempt.

Sakaraba quickly countered by bridging Kai off and getting back to his feet. Kai immediately jumped to his feet, clinching with the other bear once more.

“Hmm. You’re pretty good for a black belt Kai-san.” 

Kai just smirked before attempting to use his immense strength to tani otoshi Sakaraba, hoping to land in full mount and submit the Judoka.

Unfortunately, Sakaraba saw this coming and countered with a sumi gaeshi, landing in mount.

Kai grunted as he began to move out from under the sun bear, looking to pass under and take his back. Suddenly Sakaraba flipped Kai onto his stomach and took his back instead.

‘ _ Shit’  _ he thought as he struggled to escape the rear-naked choke Sakaraba was beginning to slip in. In an act of desperation, Kai stood to his feet, Sakaraba hanging off his back, still looking for the choke, and threw all of his weight forward, sending the sun bear flying off his back.

As Sakaraba was tossed, he grabbed Kai’s lapel hoping to stop himself with it, but instead only tore it off revealing Kai’s impressive physique.

As Kai stood straight, his bare (no pun intended) upper body exposed, many noises could be heard from the crowd. He heard many gasps and ‘wows’, but mostly, the crowd was stunned, the men looking on with admiration and approval and the women gawking and drooling over his overly-toned body.

The fighter benches were no different.

“God damn… I mean just… God DAMN.” Mantis whispered, staring at Kai.

Emile and Andrea were both unable to look away from the hundred kilos of pure muscle that stood on the platform, both with a hungry look in their eyes. Even Tigress, who made it her mission to always appear stone cold, was totally transfixed on Kai, her lower jaw hanging open.

Enkii noticed this and growled before delivering a sharp punch in the arm to all three of them, bringing them back to reality and reminding them who Kai belonged to.

Kai stood on the platform, completely shocked at what just went down. He stood there, totally shirtless, in front of a huge crowd of people, all of them taking a good long look at him. Instantly he began to feel self conscious. He was almost always completely covered since he mostly wore long sleeved clothing, so being half-naked was quite uncomfortable for him. The thing that made him most anxious, though, was the amount of women staring at him hungrily. It dredged up old feelings he hadn’t felt since the last girl he had dated over four years ago. The feeling of being reduced to one’s superficial attributes. None of these girls knew HIM, yet they’d all date him/fuck him in the blink of an eye. Not only that, but he’s also a taken man.

He had no time to continue pondering that thought, though as Sakaraba had shot in for a double leg. Kai reacted instantly, catching him in a guillotine choke, and choking him unconscious.

The crowd went insane as Kai was declared Gonglu Champion and rewarded with five extremely large, heavy bags of gold coins.

‘ _ Holy, these have gotta be like two-hundred kilos each. Jeez’ _ he thought as he hefted the bags onto his back. He noticed the girls all swooning again as he did, and the uncomfortable feeling multiplied a hundred fold for him. 

He ran back to the benches to put his other clothes back on before the ranking ceremony began.

“ _ In third place winning one hundred thousand yuan and the chance to join the Jade Palace, Master Enkii Ulta!” _

“ _ In second place, winning five hundred thousand yuan and the chance to join the Jade Palace, Master Nomi No Sakaraba!” _

“ _ And finally, our new Gonglu Champion! Winning two million yuan and the chance to join the Jade Palace, KAAAAAIROSSSS SAOOOOO, THE DEEEEEESTROOOOYERRRRR!” _

The crowd was the loudest it had been as Kai was announced the winner. He merely bowed to the audience before making his way to the exit of the arena when they were dismissed. 

He waited outside of the arena with his bags of gold, waiting for one person in particular. Within ten minutes or so that person had arrived.

“Brother,” Kai said, pulling Zhikan into a hug, “I have a gift for you.” he held out one of the bags of gold, handing it to Zhikan.

“Only one?” Zhikan teased. Kai handed him one more, and the wolf all but said ‘really’.

“Bitch, it’s still my money.” Kai said playfully, smacking Zhikan on the nose.

Zhikan gave him a corny glare before he remembered something, “Oh yeah, Kai. You are coming back to Lu Shi for the Winter Feast right?”

“Of course, I have to go back for the rest of my shit anyways.” Kai responded reassuringly.

Zhikan, beamed, “Good, because I’m getting married on the Winter Feast,” Kai’s jaw fell slightly open, “Make sure to bring your new piece with you as well as any friends you wish.”

Kai smiled a bit, “Sounds good to me.”

Zhikan chuckled lightly before a familiar tigress approached them, “Hello Zhikan.” Enkii waved friendly before drawing her attention to Kai, “Kai, the five and Po want to meet at Mr. Ping’s for a congratulatory/welcoming meal for us. They said Zhikan was welcome to accompany us as well.”

Kai looked at Zhikan, silently asking him what he wanted to do. Zhikan shrugged. Kai looked back at Enkii and smiled as he wrapped his arm around her shoulders, “For sure, let’s go.”

The trio quickly went to Kai’s room to drop off his money before they made their way down the thousand steps.

They reached the bottom and found the five and Po waiting for them.

“Hey guys! Congratulations on first and third place!.” Po beamed as he slapped Kai on the back. Kai winced a bit, “Thanks Po, but could you ease up on the physical contact, my ribs are completely fucked right now.”

Po’s eyes widened as he quickly removed his hand, grinning sheepishly, “Oh, sorry.” he apologized.

Kai just nodded at him, “So how do we get to Mr. Ping’s?”

“Oh, we’re just gonna forward a few kilometers then left and it’s there.” Mantis answered.

“And what exactly does Mr. Ping’s serve? Is it good?” Kai asked.

“He serves noodles, in fact, he’s actually the one who taught Po how to make secret ingredient soup.”

“Aha, and does he have a decent alcohol selection? I like baiju enough, but I was hoping to find some mead around here.” Zhikan nodded his head in agreement.

Mantis rubbed his chin in thought, “Well, we don’t usually go to Ping’s for alcohol, but most places around here have mead, so I’d imagine Ping’s will as well.”

“Alright, then vamanos.” everybody except Zhikan gave him weird looks.

Tigress looked at him with a confused expression, “Vamanos?”

“Yeah, it’s Spanish for ‘let’s go’.” Kai clarified.

“Why are you speaking a different language? You were born in China right?” Po looked at him in bewilderment.

“Well I have a few friends from Spain that train at Zhikan’s academy. They usually mixed their Chinese with a bit of Spanish. I guess it just caught on.” Kai shrugged, “They’re also who I adopted my current faith from.”

“You’re not buddhist?” Tigress asked incredulously. He noticed everyone else except for Zhikan and Enkii looking at him the same way.

“Well, in morals and ideals I am, but in terms of belief, I am what’s called a  _ Christian. _ The basic jist is that I believe in one God who is all powerful, and that his son died as a compensation for the sins of man.” Kai responded, rubbing the back of his neck.

“You’re on some wacko shit man. Did you take opium or langdang before this?” Mantis gave him a look.

Kai deadpanned, “Nope, I only drink and smoke dama (weed).”

“Woah you smoke dama? Where do you buy from? Do you have any? Do you need some?” Monkey began asking excitedly.

“Woah woah woah, hold on for a minute. You guys smoke dama? Isn’t that like, forbidden for Kung Fu masters?” Po asked.

“No, not at all. In fact, many Kung Fu masters used it during meditation and as a way to form a deeper connection with their spirit as well as the spirits around us.” Zhikan interjected.

Po looked to Tigress then to Enkii then to Kai. Each of them gave him a nod of reassurance.

“Anyways, we’ve wasted enough time, let’s get to Ping’s before it’s dark. I still have shit to do today.” Tigress sounded slightly irritated at all the meaningless chit chat going on as she abruptly turned around and began to march towards Mr. Ping’s Noodles and Tofu.

The rest followed suit, talking idly or telling jokes.

Enkii was walking close to Kai, leaning her head on his shoulder, “Kai, you should really trim your neck hair, it’s getting kind of poofy and I’m not sure if I like it.”

Kai chuckled, “That’s not what you were saying when you had your face buried in it last night. In that moment I was sure you loved it, what with you purring and chuffing.”

The others burst out with laughter. Even Tigress managed to chuckle a bit. Enkii just pouted as a furious blush overtook her face.

“You two have great chemistry, Kai.” Zhikan whispered into Kai’s ear, “She seems different from the others you’ve dated, you should definitely hold on to this one.”

Kai nodded in agreement as he sent a look down to Enkii’s pouting face. He felt something totally new in that moment. He felt warm on the inside and he couldn’t help but smile. 

Of course, in classic Tigress fashion, she had to ruin the mood.

“You know, Kai, you probably shouldn’t get too comfortable showing your affection outside of a private setting. The same goes for you Enkii. There is a law that prohibits romantic relations among two warriors of the Jade Palace, for it has the potential to disrupt your chi and cause unnecessary conflict between warriors.”

Kai deadpanned before getting a sinister idea, “Is that why you keep your relationship with Po a secret?”

Kai almost couldn’t contain himself at the look of shock that came across the Panda and Tiger’s faces as they both went bright red.

The others just looked on knowingly.

“Really, all of you know?” Po asked, they all just nodded while smiling, “How long have you known.”

“Probably six months or so.” Mantis responded.

‘ _ That long!?’  _ Po thought.

“I guess we weren’t as great at hiding it as we thought.” Po grinned sheepishly as he threw his arm around the somehow redder Tigress, “Well, since the cat’s out of the bag, pun intended, I may as well confirm your suspicions. Master Tigress and the Dragon Warrior have become Masters of Muzzle Combat, Lords of Love, Partners in Passion, Warriors o-”

Po’s extravagant fanfair was cut short by a fist in his face, delivered by none other than the irate Master Tigress herself.

“Got it.” Po said dejectedly, clutching his bleeding nose.

Everybody else was dying laughing now, unable to hold it in any longer. As the laughter died down, Mantis spoke up in a more serious tone.

“But seriously guys, why does such a harsh law exist, and why are we obligated to follow it. I always thought that love was supposed to make you stronger. I’m almost thirty. I don’t want to waste the prime of my life dreaming about girls.”

Kai’s face shifted to one of slight anger as he looked forward, “It’s ‘cause we have a pretentious asshole running the nation. He never managed to woo a woman on his own so he takes it out on the Kung Fu masters in an act of jealousy, making up a bunch of nonsensical bullshit like ‘it’ll put your chi out of balance’ or ‘you’re putting each other at risk’. All of these claims are logically and statistically wrong only serving to further prove my point. He continues to suck down opium like a whore sucks down dicks, all while continuing to poison our economy, take away our rights, and trade with the British oppressors all while acting like he’s doing good for us.”

“Woah, Kai, you gotta watch what you say in public man. The emperor isn’t too fond of those who insult him.” Crane said apprehensively, glancing around the area.

Kai just grunted, “What can that cur do to me. I could wipe out his entire military on my own let alone his wimp ass assassins.”

Everyone but Zhikan looked at him in doubt.

“Kai, we all know you’re amazing, but the WHOLE army. He has millions of highly trained men. I doubt all the Kung Fu masters in China could take on such a force together, let alone one of them.” Crane said.

Kai looked up in thought, “Well let’s see. Those Qinchai guys wiped out over half of his army in one one day batlle correct?” Crane nodded, “I took on those guys, by myself, and won easily. In theory, shouldn’t that, logically, serve as evidence that I could?”

“Perhaps, but the math on that is a bit shaky. It’s still probably best not to say anything though.” Enkii said.

He shrugged and they continued walking.

When they got to Ping’s, they found a large table in the back corner before ordering. 

“What can I get you fine warriors?” Mr. Ping asked warmly.

Po spoke first, “Uhh… just get me a bowl of secret ingredient soup and a platter of dumplings please.”

“Alright what else.”

Everyone else but Tigress and Kai just ordered the same thing as Po.

“And you Tigress?” Ping asked.

“I will have a bowl of extra hot noodle soup with a small dumpling plate.” She responded.

“And finally uhh- sorry I didn’t catch your name young man.” Ping smiled politely at Kai.

“Oh, just call me Kai.” he responded hastily.

“Okay, what would you like, Kai?”

“Just get me the same as Tigress. Also do you have honey mead here?” Ping nodded, “What alcohol content is it.”

“The mead here is twenty five percent alcohol.”

“Perfect, get me two pints of that.” Kai looked at Zhikan who grinned back.

Everyone stared at Kai in shock.

“You drink a pint each!?” Monkey asked, exasperated.

“Yup, If we’re having a hefty meal, we need quite a bit to get buzzed.” Zhikan responded proudly.

“Good grief…” Mantis muttered.

They all paid and sat down at the table where they began to chat again while Po and Mr. Ping brought out their orders.

“Two extra spicy noodles, two small dumplings plates, one large soup dumpling, seven secret ingredient soup, seven waters, and two pints of honey mead. Will that be all?” Ping asked warmly.

“Yes, sir, thank you very much.” Enkii answered.

“So how hot is this soup?” Kai asked Tigress.

“Decently hot, what, are you worried about a little heat?” She teased.

“Perhaps. If it’s as hot as the posters lead me to believe then probably.” Kai admitted before taking a sip of the broth, he looked up, “It tastes really good, but isn’t actually that hot, in fact,” he dug around in his bag before pulling out a small flask with a thick, burgundy liquid inside, “I think I’m gonna add some of my hot sauce to it.”

“You bring your own hot sauce to restaurants!? Who does that!?” Mantis asked, dumbfounded once more.

“I do. You see, I almost never ate outside of the academy for the twenty two years I was there because you need to have a strict diet if you want to succeed in this martial art. My diet consisted of steamed vegetables, unseasoned raw salmon, and maybe if Zhikan was feeling generous, a bowl of egg and rice with shoyu.” he shot Zhikan a fake glare before continuing, “Anyways, at a certain point I got tired of eating almost exclusively those bland, soggy, flavorless vegetables-” Kai was cut off by a punch in the arm from Zhikan, “Hey, face it man, you were not good at cooking.” Zhikan scoffed and crossed his arms, “As I was saying, after I got tired of all that junk, I decided to figure out a way to add some semblance of flavor to it so I worked long and hard on this sauce which just so happens to contain extract of imported Bhut Jolokia (Ghost peppers) peppers, making it extremely spicy.” he lifted the flask up proudly, “Anyone care to try it?”

“I will.” Tigress popped in only to be met with a cautious look from Kai.

“Are you sure? Bhut Jolokia peppers are the hottest on the planet.” Kai warned.

“It can’t be THAT much hotter than my soup right?” she responded (famous last words am I right).

Kai shrugged and Zhikan grinned sinisterly before he handed the flask to her.

She put a small drop on her chopstick and put it in her mouth. She let it move around her mouth for a moment, but seemed relatively non affected.

“It’s hot for sure, but mostly it’s just flavorfu-'' If there were ever a time for steam to come out of someone’s ears, this would be it. Her eyes widened and she shut her mouth instantly, trying to maintain her stony facade while her mouth was assaulted by the sauce (that sentence would sound really bad out of context).

Kai and Zhikan chuckled a bit, “Anyone else?”

The rest of the group tried a bit of it starting with Crane whos hat practically flew of his head, then Mantis who passed out immediately, then Monkey who chugged his water, then Viper who panted heavily, then Po who stood up and ran around with his tongue sticking out, then Enkii who had a similar reaction as Tigress, and finally Zhikan who, unsurprisingly, barely reacted.

Kai looked at the group of suffering warriors while chuckling.

“What the hell is wrong with your mouth man?” Mantis asked once he woke up.

Kai shrugged, “I dunno, I enjoy it I guess.”

He grabbed the flask and poured a large amount into his soup before licking the extra off his fingers. They stared at him like he was crazy as he mixed it up and began eating calmly.

“Mmmm, that’s better.” he said after his first bite.

“Fuckin’ masochist.” Mantis mumbled only to be slapped by Viper, “What was that for!?”

“That was uncalled for. Liking spicy food doesn’t mean you’re a masochist.” Viper scolded.

“Well I thought it was funny.” Mantis pouted and began to eat his soup.

They returned to their regular merry banter and storytelling while they finished up their meals. 

Soon they landed on a topic that was touchy for multiple members of the group, backstories.

‘ _ I’m not drunk enough for this.’  _ Kai thought.

“I was born in a Panda village not far from Gongmen City where I was raised for a bit until Lord Shen was given a prophecy that caused him to slaughter my people. My mom sacrificed herself to get me to safety in the form of a vegetable delivery. That delivery was sent here for my dad who raised me into adulthood, and the rest is history.” Po shared.

Mantis spoke up next, “Well, I was just a normal mantis, practicing my family’s craft, acupuncture, until I was hired by Master Shifu to cure his ailments. That didn’t go too well, but just as I was about to leave and return home, Tigress appeared out of nowhere telling me that she needed my help to fight a villain. I accepted, and now here we are.”

Kai, Enkii, and Zhikan nodded.

Viper spoke next, “I was just a ribbon dancer with no teeth. I defeated a threat to my village and was, like Mantis, found by Tigress who recruited me to fight Boar.” she snake-shrugged before falling silent again.

“I was a prankster and a nuisance to my village until Master Oogway made me change my ways. Like the rest of the five I was recruited by Tigress to fight Boar.” Monkey added casually.

“I guess I’ll go next.” Craned piped up, “I was a janitor at the Lee Da academy not far from here. Nobody let me actually practice Kung Fu until one day, I accidentally ended up inside one of the training courses where I passed with flying colors. I trained at Lee Da for a while before I was recruited by Tigress and made part of the Furious Five.”

Tigress sighed and stared at the table pensively, “I was orphaned in the first year of my life at the Bao Gu orphanage in the village. For the first four years of my life I was belittled and shunned. I was called a monster and got locked in my room for most of the day and night. Most nights I would cry myself to sleep after failing to pick the lock. I continued on like this for three years before Master Shifu adopted me and brought me to the Jade Palace where I was raised as a student of Kung Fu. Eventually Shifu fell ill and he sent me on a mission to gather four warriors, but by some twist of fate, I was given the wrong scroll and that led me to seek out the rest of the five. We defeated Boar as a team and the other four were taken in as students of the Jade Palace.”

“Tigress, can I see your left shoulder?” Enkii asked.

“Why?”

“Humor me.”

Tigress lifted up her golden sleeve to reveal her shoulder. Enkii stood and looked at it closely. Suddenly she gasped and lifted and recoiled, staring at Tigress in shock. Everyone gave her a concerned look.

“Wh-what’s wrong?” Tigress asked, clearly apprehensive.

Enkii answered by lifting up her sleeve and showing her left shoulder. Upon close inspection the symbol for fire ( 火 )  was tattooed on the same location on both of them.

Enkii looked at Tigress before explaining, “I come from the Ulta Fide Clan. In my clan’s language ulta fide means resilient flame. The fact that you have that tattoo on your arm means you were born into the same family as I was, the Ulta Fankal (family of fire)

“Tigress, how old are you?” Enkii asked.

“I-I’m twenty three. Why?” Tigress asked apprehensively.

“Well, I’ll just tell my backstory to explain. I was born into the Ulta Fide clan near the China-India border. We acted as a sovereign state just like most large groupings of big cats. I was raised as the only child of the Ulta Fankal and, as such, I was groomed from a young age to participate in the Li Jo Tournament.”

“You see, big-cat clans are rather barbaric and primitive so they use fighting ability to determine who has power in the clan. Since I was the only child of my family, I was expected to win the tournament to allow my family to rise to the top of the hierarchy. If I didn’t, I would be subjected to the typical treatment of a female. Essentially, once a female reaches the age of fertility, they undergo a ritual in which they are drugged with substances that uhh…  _ titillate  _ the senses, forcing them to want to mate. As such, many females end up in unhappy and abusive relationships with males, they also get addicted to the drug which makes them have copious amounts of children.”

“My mother was fortunate enough to avoid this fate as she was unable to conceive more than one child in her entire fifty year life. That is, until I turned four and my mother was surprised with an unexpected pregnancy. I ended up having a little sister named Ulta Mihn or Joyous Flame.” she smiled a bit, “Unfortunately, fate is cruel and the same year she was born, a neighboring leopard clan declared war on our clan. My mother, being the kind spirit she was, already didn’t want to subject Mihn to the fate that befell females of our society, but the war only served to further her determination to get Mihn to safety. When the war was at its worst, my mother, my father, and I all ventured north to a valley where we found an orphanage. My parents were going to leave both of us at the orphanage and return to the clan to help their friends and comrades, however, they realized that the livelihood of the family relied on me being the Li Jo Shil (Hero of Li Jo) so they left only Mihn and brought me back with them.” Tigress was beginning to fidget nervously and the others at the table were beginning to catch on, “Tigress, I-I’m twenty seven, four years older than you. I-I don’t remember many minute details of that journey, but I do recall the village we found apparently being under the protection of a red panda, a tortoise, and a snow leopard. The orphanage building we went to was called Bao Gu.” the whole group gasped, “Tigress, I-I think you’re my younger sister.”

Tigress looked at Enkii, tears welling up in her eyes, “The caretakers, for what little they did for me, told me that I was left there by three tigers, two adults and one child.”

They continued staring at each other for five seconds before some message was silently passed between them and they suddenly jumped onto one another in a fierce hug. The shocked look of the rest of the group quickly melted into smiles as they watched the teary reunion in front of them. Even Kai, one who usually scoffs at such raw emotion, couldn’t help but smile.

Kai leaned over to Po, “In Christianity, this is what we would call a ‘miracle’. Basically something that is so unlikely, yet so amazing that it could only have been orchestrated by some divine being or force.” 

Po nodded, “While I may not be a crispiani-whatever, I do agree that this must have something divine about it.”

The two felines continued to exchange whispers while in their embrace for two whole minutes before they finally sat back down, both with happy expressions.

“Now the resemblance makes more sense.” Mantis joked, earning a light chuckle from the table.

“So, Enkii. W-where are our parents now?” Tigress asked cautiously.

Enkii’s face saddened and she gripped Kai’s paw under the table. Kai squeezed back, knowing where this was going.

“That’s where the rest of my story comes in. After we returned to the clan, I trained until I turned fifteen which is considered the age of fertility for tigers. That was when I had to compete in the tournament, and I somehow won. This brought my family to the top of the hierarchy and, as such, the clan was renamed from the Ordu Fide (resilient stone) to the Ulta Fide. Unfortunately, my father was corrupted by his new power, which caused him to make a fatal mistake.” Enkii was staring at the table, tears in her eyes once more, “He chose to declare war on Ip Kong, and by extension, China itself.” The group gave shocked looks to the feline and Tigress’s eyes widened, “I decided to flee alongside our mother and a few other tigers to the far northern sovereign nation of Kirpon. While on our journey, we were sent a message from father that said the entire clan had been ravaged and that he along with all of our comrades wouldn’t survive even until the Mid-Autumn festival. It was his final goodbye.” Tigress was transfixed on her sister, her eyes beginning to moisten, “His body was brought to us within the same year. After his funeral, we found asylum with a small family of tigers that had fled there during the first war. Sadly, after three months of living in Kirpon, our mother grew ill.” Enkii paused and squeezed Kai’s paw, “The Kirpon Confederacy is world renowned for its technological and medical advancements. This meant that they were able to diagnose our mother with a degenerative brain ailment called dementia which is fatal in most adults. Her death wasn’t the hard part though, it was watching her mind deteriorate slowly as I took care of her in her final months. Watching everyday as she lost her mind was unbearable. It is said that, with dementia, the person is dead long before their heart stops. That was definitely true for our mother. Her final words to me were ‘fly to stars and return to divinity young one’” Enkii sobbed.

Tigress, uncharacteristically, had tears running down her face as well. Viper, who had been openly sobbing since the reunion, managed to compose herself enough to move forward and comfort Tigress. Kaijust sat there, holding Enkii’s paw, not really sure how to comfort her.

“What were they like? What were their names?” Tigress asked quietly.

“Our dad’s name was Caious Ulta, Brave Flame. He was stern and strict, yet gentle and caring.” Enkii looked up, her face held a bit more happiness now, “He always stood up for the females of the house and never backed down from a challenge. He was strong willed and very smart, essentially a fountain of infinite wisdom. He was never afraid to confront emotions either, he helped our mother and I work through some of our toughest times. Unfortunately, that which gave him strength also ended up being his downfall.”

She gave the group a little smile of reassurance before continuing.

“Our mother… our mother was perfect. She was beautiful and kind, warm and compassionate. She would always be a shoulder to cry on and an ear to talk to. She didn’t eat meat because, to her, every living thing was a beautiful work of art that shouldn't be harmed.” Enkii was smiling now, clearly recalling fond memories, “She used to feed feral birds and mice even if they were intruding on our home. She would always get so flustered whenever dad or I squashed a bug. If we did, she would make us clean the whole house then host a small-scale funeral for it.” she laughed a bit, “I remember this one time when she finished reading me a story, a moth had landed on the inside of the book right before she closed it. She accidentally killed it and my dad had to comfort her for an hour straight. Back then I thought it was funny, but now, I see it as proof of her beautiful, gentle soul.” Enkii looked up at Tigress who was still crying, but with a small, somber smile had formed, “I definitely take after our mom mostly and you definitely take after our dad. You’re headstrong, smart, and will rise to any challenge. Even your stripes resemble dad’s, but that isn’t to say you don’t share some of mother’s compassionate, warm soul.” Tigress smiled at her before wiping away her tears, “Now I would be lying to you if I said we never struggled. Sometimes it was… difficult, but in the end we were always able to make up as a family.” Enkii leaned onto Kai’s shoulder and rested her head in his neck fur. The table settled into a comfortable silence.

“What about you?” Po asked, looking towards Zhikan.

Zhikan looked around at the group before he spoke, “I was born thirty nine years ago to a wolf pack in China called the Shizhin. I had fifteen or so siblings because my father would mate with all of the female wolves in the pack. Unfortunately, I only grew up really knowing my mother because of this. She cared for me dearly and was my only friend, the only one I could trust. She taught me how to read, how to write, and how to draw. She taught me how to socialize and act among others and instilled into me every moral I hold today. We were as close as a mother and son could possibly be; however, when I was eleven the leader of the pack, my father, ended up relocating us to Japan so that he could involve himself with the Yakuza. Sure we got more money, but the cost was… immense. Our previously peaceful and kind pack grew into a spiteful, violent pack. Ever since we moved to Japan, my distant father had me on a team that would escort large volumes of illegal drugs and slaves across the border then smuggle them into towns and cities. My team and I had over twenty eight confirmed kills and it weighed heavily on my conscience, but it weighed tenfold on my mother’s. Eventually she couldn’t stand seeing me suffer and she confronted my father. He didn’t take it well and had the Yakuza perform a crude lobotomy on my mother, causing her to become one hundred percent emotionally neutral.” his face grew pained, “Eventually, the absolute lack of feeling was too much for her to bear and she killed herself. I was fourteen at the time. She left me this.” he pulled a necklace out from his shirt, “It has her suicide note written in it.” Zhikan was staring dejectedly at the table, while everyone else just sat in melancholy silence, except for Viper who was openly sobbing once more. 

“I won’t read it out to you guys because it was my mothers wish that what was said was kept secret until the day I die.” Zhikan looked at Kai meaningfully and he nodded, “I was forced to continue these heinous acts for three more years until I was finally pushed over the edge.” Zhikan suddenly gripped the table so hard that it splintered and a look of hatred came over his face, “My father found out that one of our wolves was actually a double agent working with the Makai, so he forced me to kill him, flay him, and chop him into steaks. Then my father and his closest subordinates cooked him and ate him.” Zhikan was now shaking violently as the others stared on in horror. Kai merely crossed his arms and closed his eyes, “I felt vile, I felt like scum. It was so severe that I almost took my own life, but I managed to pull through and decided just to get as far away from the Shizin as possible. I somehow found my way to the Lu Shi village where I opened up my martial arts academy in an old rotting building. Within the same year, a five year old Kai showed up on my doorstep in a… distressed state.” Zhikan looked over at him solemnly, Kai just nodded, “He asked to join my academy and he was obviously too young to take care of himself, so I brought him under my wing and let him live with me in the academy. Our relationship was never like a father and son however, rather it was more like elder brother and younger brother.” Zhikan looked around at each of the group members, noticing their solemn expressions, “But hey, it isn’t all bad, right? I mean, I ended up with the best friend anyone could ask for and now I’m about to get married and have a child.” Zhikan smiled and everyone seemed to brighten a bit before darkening again when Po spoke.

“You wanna share, Kai?” Po asked. 

Instantly Enkii spoke up, “Maybe we shouldn’t discuss tha-”

Kai raised his paw to silence her, “No, Enkii, it’s fine. I believe they have a right to know, especially since we will be living with them from now on. Also you and Zhikan shared your backstories so I’m kinda obligated to share mine now.” Kai sighed long and deep and felt Enkii’s paw rubbing his back and Zhikan’s gripping his shoulder. The rest of the group looked on eagerly, “I was born in the Lu Shi village in the far north western corner of China. Sadly, my mother died three minutes after my birth due to blood loss.” he spoke in an emotionless voice, a coping mechanism to avoid showing his true feelings, “My dad… he didn’t take it well. He started drinking and gambling and wasting away in brothels, just barely feeding me enough to survive and leaving me to sleep on top of an old rice sack in the middle of our living room. He neglected my basic needs because he considered it ‘atonement’ for my mother’s death. He blamed me to the point where he began to beat me while he was drunk and it only escalated from there. What were light bruisings while he was drunk turned into cuts and burns while he was sober to broken bones and cuts on my throat for doing anything mildly bad. Anything from breaking a vase to entering his room without permission. Soon the beatings became almost daily and only got worse as I grew up. It got to the point where on numerous occasions, I had to walk myself to the medical hut at night to get my injuries treated, but there were some nights that I would be beaten to the point that I was a centimeter from death and only just barely held onto my life. Nights like those I couldn’t even stand up to walk myself to the doctor.” Kai lifted up his shirt to show the numerous scars painted across his body. He then pointed to the scar across his left eye, “This was from the last beating I ever got. The day that beating happened, I walked to the medical hut and talked to the kind doctor who worked there. He fixed me up like usual and sent me home, not without trying to uncover the real reason I always came in with such brutal injuries though. When I got back home, I found my dad dead on the floor. He had a half empty bottle of rice wine in his hand and vomit spilling out of his mouth. Obviously having choked to death on his own vomit before I got there. I didn’t know how to feel at the time, probably because I was five, but also it was more than that. Before me was the man that made me feel worthless, that made me feel like I didn’t matter and that it was my fault my mother died. The man whose sole purpose was to fuck me up. But my naive mind saw something else as well. I saw the man that still, despite hating me, raised me for five years, kept me alive for five years. It wasn’t until I experienced true affection that I realized how wrong everything he did to me was.” Kai looked at Zhikan, “That night, I left the house and wandered aimlessly for hours until I stumbled upon a martial arts academy and a voice in my head told me to knock. So I did. That’s when I met Zhikan and I’ve lived and trained with him ever since.” Kai looked up at the group all of which, excluding Enkii and Zhikan, wore shocked, sad looks, “You know, it’s almost funny. You’d think I’d hate alcohol after my experience with it, but I suppose the saying ‘like father like son’ holds some truth.” Kai let out a cynical laugh before wrapping up, “Though my dad intended to leave physical scars, it’s the mental ones that have stuck with me all these years. It’s the mental ones that define who I am.”

Enkii tried to steady her emotions, feeling herself getting more and more worried for some bear she just met. It confused her a bit, but somehow it just felt right.

She hugged Kai’s arm tight, and he just leaned his head onto hers and sighed. 

‘ _ This is going to be a long night’ _

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  



	8. Chapter 8

**So in the last chapter I dropped quite a few bombshells. We now know that Enkii is Tigress’s sister and that Zhikan had a traumatic past. We also know what Seeth is thinking and we finally got an insight into the story from his perspective, showing us that there are no true VILLAINS in this story, rather it’s just a bunch of people stuck in some shit circumstances. I hope that the reveal of Tigress’s family wasn’t too sudden or out of nowhere. I was trying to hint at it since they first met. Anyways, there won’t be anymore crazy bombshells for a while, this chapter is mostly transitional filler for the next phase of this story. As always, feel free to PM me ideas (I’ll credit you in the story), and make sure to enjoy and review. :|**

**Chapter 8**

**A cold walk through a cold place**

_ “Sadness and pain can be oddly addictive, especially if you’ve known nothing else” _

**First person POV: Kai**

The rest of the night was rather melancholy for me, but I couldn’t say the same for the others. The enlightenment they had received brought both great joy and great pain. The two happy sisters and the two depressed brothers dragging the mood in any number of directions until I couldn’t stand it anymore. I needed to mull over my thoughts for a bit…  _ alone.  _ Besides, my dismal radiance wouldn’t sully the mood any further if I dismissed myself, so I guess that’s a positive.

I looked at my comrades before me, the shocked, sad looks had faded back into smiles as everyone remembered the happy news that they’d received. Enkii and Tigress had begun chatting again, mostly about their past and their parents, but also some very out of character girl talk. I managed to siphon bits and pieces from the conversation that brought me to the conclusion that their hushed whispers were them sharing compliments and complaints about Po and I. 

Zhikan and I had both become reclusive. Neither of us spoke unless spoken to and even then the most either of us gave was a one word phrase or a grunt. Eventually, the monotonous drone of conversation was getting to me and I needed to isolate.

I stood up and looked at my comrades, “I need a little time to uhh… mull over my thoughts. If you need me, I’ll be off in a bar somewhere doing something.” I was painfully aware of how dejected I sounded as I gazed upon the table’s occupants who, with the exception of Zhikan, all wore looks of confusion. I glanced over at Enkii, concern painted across her face. I gave her a small smile of reassurance as the universal gesture for ‘I’m not mad at you so don’t worry’. I paid a second glance to Zhikan who looked like he was about to do the same, he gave me a curt nod before he too stood up, “I’m gonna call it a night. I’ll pay you guys a visit before I leave in a few days.” he said, leaving the restaurant. I quickly followed his lead, telling the others that I would be back at the palace in a few hours.

As I exited the restaurant, I was greeted with something comforting. The cold, dry, autumn air, tinted with the light scent of smoke was replaced with the fresh smell of snow that had just begun to fall.

Ahh winter, my favorite season. I was born and raised in the cold, so the feeling held nostalgia. Not only that, but because of the climate of Lu Shi, I never had a shedding period, and as such, I was usually uncomfortably hut during summer, even opting to remain shirtless to avoid a tsunami of sweat that would inevitably pour through my back if I didn’t. All the best things that happened to me happened in the cold as well. My father’s death, my first class at the academy, my birthdays, my first time mating, meeting Enkii, winning the tournament, all of it happened in the cold.

I looked up at the blanket of fluffy snowflakes that speckled the clouds above, enjoying the sharp cold that accompanied one landing on my face. My mind now slightly more peaceful, I began my trek in search of a non populated bar. Eventually, after peeking inside multiple others, I happened upon a small place called ‘The Pig’s Head’ that was borderline abandoned save for a few other depressed-looking guests, all drinking absently, attempting to numb some pain.

The inside was  _ quaint,  _ to say the least. The tables were all haphazardly carved out of giant logs to roughly resemble tables from other shops. The chairs were just smaller logs splayed across the room randomly. The whole place was dimly lit, giving it a calm, somber feel. The only noise was the clinking of ice cubes in glasses, coughs, and the occasional request for a refill.

It was perfect.

I walked to the bar to order a drink.

“Three shots of Hibiki on the rocks.” I said to the bartender, a gruff looking pig. He grunted in response before pouring me my drink, I grabbed it and looked at him, “Can I smoke in here?” It was less of a question and more of a statement, like I was saying ‘I’m going to smoke in here’. Unsurprisingly, the barkeep nodded and even offered a flint sparker for me to use.

I sat at one of the tables before pulling out my own sparker and a cigar packed with dama ( **By the way, ‘dama’ is weed** ). I bit the end off then lit the cigar and took a few puffs, enjoying the unique mixture of tobacco and hemp. I brought it away from my mouth with two fingers before taking a sip of my drink. I looked around the joint and noticed that multiple of the other guests had also begun smoking. I sighed pensively, releasing a thick white cloud from my lips before pulling out a small, leather bound book full of blank parchment. I opened it up to the first clean page and began to draw. I had no particular thing that I wanted to draw, I just wanted to draw… something.

I had taken more puffs from the cigar to the point that it was halfway done, and finished off my drink by the time my drawing had actually begun to take the shape of anything. I ordered another drink and took a sip as I continued, now having a clear image in my mind of what I was drawing. After a bit, a certain striped feline stared up at me with a warm smile from the page. I had drawn her with uncanny detail to the point that I almost couldn’t tell if it was real or not. It looked as if she might jump out of the page at any moment. A feeling of pride overtook me as I silently thanked Zhikan for teaching me how to draw, before looking around the bar. All of the other patrons were gone now and the bartender was cleaning glasses and wiping down the counter.

“Hey barkeep, could I get one more for the road?” The pig gave his usual grunt before pouring the drink and sliding it across the counter to me. I downed it quickly and looked at the clock behind the bar. 

‘ _ Good grief… it’s already ten o’clock’ _

I sighed and tossed a few coins onto the counter, taking the final drag off of my cigar and making for the exit.

The walk back to the palace was rather difficult considering I was nine shots, one pint, and four grams deep in intoxication. I passed by Mr. Ping’s and glanced inside only to see Po helping his goose dad clean up and Enkii and Tigress still talking quietly. The others appeared to have left already. Enkii looked up from her conversation and frowned at me in concern. She bid farewell to Tigress and Po before quickly hurrying over to me.

“Are you ok? You don’t look like you’re doing too well.” she said.

“Yeah, I’m just feeling a little down at the moment.”

In all fairness I was fine you know? I mean, I wasn't  _ fine _ , but I was…  _ fine _ .

She looked deeply into my eyes, searching for something. Any indication that something was wrong. Clearly I didn’t show any because eventually she gave up and just took to walking close by my side.

The walk back was silent, I just enjoyed holding her small frame close to me. It was nice. It reminded me that I have someone to lean on when I need. I imagine she was also enjoying the warmth that radiated off of me, defending her from the cold, as a low, happy purr vibrated against my chest. As the night went on, the snow picked up into a full scale blizzard, bringing with it a freakish cold front. Enkii began to shiver as our view was obscured by the fast moving snow so I lifted her off the ground bridal style, allowing her to wrap her arms around my neck and bury herself in my fur.

I continued to walk through the blizzard mostly unaffected. We arrived at the foot of the palace steps and I set Enkii back down. Suddenly she pulled me into a tight hug, burying her face into my fur, “Kai, seriously, are you ok?” She asked, her hazel eyes piercing into my own. I sighed pensively and looked up at the dark clouds that blanketed the sky in wooly blackness.

“Enkii, I’m not gonna lie to you when I say this, but frankly…” I looked into her eyes and attempted a small smile, “I-I’m really not ok.” Her eyes saddened a bit, I was surprised by my own honesty. Though I had already made my decision, there was still a small voice chiding me for being so honest with someone I  _ technically _ only knew for less than a month.

I placed my head on top of hers affectionately, “It’s just… certain things have happened to me, and… I just can’t let them go, no matter how hard I try. I find myself living in the past more and more nowadays, and conversations like the one we had today just drag me back into that state of mind.” She sniffled a bit and I felt warm tears beginning to wet my fur.

“Just remember that I’m here for you,” She said, holding me tighter and pushing further into my chest, “and that you need to tell me about these things. You can’t win every battle alone.” She let go and took a step back, holding my paws and looking into my eyes meaningfully, “Promise me you’ll talk to me when things like this happen ok?”

I looked at her and offered a small smile, “Ok.”

“Good, now let’s get back to the palace I’m freezing!” She said, wiping the tears off her face and grabbing my hand.

We moved up the steps quickly and when we reached the top, we were greeted by the others who seemed to also have just got back. We all ventured into the warmth of the barracks and bid each other goodnight.

Enkii and I went to our room. The inside was quite chilly having not received any heat from the fireplace near the entrance and the paper walls doing very little to insulate it. She began to shiver again so I grabbed a few thick, fleece blankets from the closet and draped them around her. I decided that the single bed was far too small for the both of us, so I quickly rearranged the furniture a bit and ended up with a double bed made from two singles. I laid down on my half closest to the wall and she quickly joined me, planting a kiss on my lips before turning the other way and pulling my arms onto her waist. I accepted the position and rested my head on top of hers, quickly lulling into a deep sleep.

**Kai’s dreamscape**

I opened my eyes to find myself floating on some rock or something in what looked like space. Billions of stars painted my vision and illuminated the many planets and galaxies around me in various shades of purple and blue. The scene would have been quite breathtaking had I not been bound by the wrists by some white chains. I tried to break the chains which, under normal circumstances, would have been easy, but these chains were different, like magic or something.

I stopped struggling until I heard a great commotion coming from somewhere around me.

“Seeth, you can’t possibly go through with this!” I froze up, that was Enkii’s voice loud and clear.

The one called ‘Seeth’ responded in a sad tone, “I’m sorry Enkii, but he’s just far too stubborn. It needs to be done for the sake of the universe.”

Suddenly two figures appeared in front of me. One of them I recognized instantly. It was Enkii, but her coat was gold with white stripes and she was dressed in the most elegant dress I had ever laid eyes upon. There was also a great white bear that looked a lot like…  _ me,  _ but just with white fur and no scars.

I tried to yell at the bear, but my voice refused to talk. Suddenly the bear spoke up.

“Brother, please reason with me!” he said, his voice full of sadness.

I took a long look at him and, to my shock, he felt…  _ familiar _ . The same way I felt when I first saw Enkii, as if this total stranger was actually a long-time friend of mine.

I grunted involuntarily in response.

“Fine, I will offer you a compromise.” He was beginning to sound desperate, “How about you just destroy parts of the universe at a time and I can continue to refresh those parts, that way, we both get something.”

“Seeth, there is ONE way to maintain balance, cosmic harmony if you will, and I have already told it to you numerous times before, let’s get this over with.” I spoke involuntarily again.

‘ _ What the hell is going on’ _

Enkii looked between the two of us in distress.

“Brother, please stop this madness, just accept the compromise and live on in peace.” The bear sounded more desperate than ever.

“It is my duty to preserve balance in this universe , I will NEVER abandon that. I’m afraid that this is the only way it can happen.”

If she looked distressed before, Enkii looked downright horrified now, “Kai, please-”

“Enkii, my love. If this is the way that it must be, then this is the way it shall be.” 

I felt a lump form in my throat and a smile form on my face, “If it’s any comfort, I enjoyed the six billion years we had together. I was truly happy the whole while.”

‘ _ Six billion years!? I’ve known her for less than a month!’ _

The scene began to blur and unblur and a great ball of light appeared behind Seeth. There was a muffled conversation that I couldn’t understand despite having added my own muffled input multiple times. The ball of light suddenly vanished inside of Seeth and he was raised off the ground. A blinding flash of light and a blood curdling scream, then I fell out of consciousness.

Suddenly I was back in Lu Shi walking on a rather familiar path. The path to my old house.

I arrived at the deteriorating building and a sense of anxiety and fear bubbled up inside of me. For some reason I raised my hand to knock, but I couldn't even bring myself to do that much before suddenly, thousands of black tendrils shot out from behind the door and rapidly dragged me in.

The house looked the same as I remembered it except it was only lit by a dim red glow coming from the roof. Then I smelled it. The smell, that sickly sweet horrible aroma that drowned out my other senses and burned my nostrils. I realized what the smell was, it was a mixture of rice wine, vomit, and dead body, all coalescing into one acrid, disgusting fume that burned my nose and upset my stomach.

The black tendrils forcefully slammed me on the ground in my kitchen before disappearing, leaving me all alone. That is until I saw  _ him _ , my father, rice wine in hand and looking like a zombie, he began his trek towards me. I was paralyzed by fear, I couldn’t even bring myself to scream or swallow or blink. My mind entered panic mode and the only thing I could think about was what was about to come next. He pounced, but instead of waking up like I usually did, the scene just changed to the Gonglu fighting platform. My dad was still on top of me, delivering a ruthless beating when I realized I was completely shirtless. The crowd around me was booing loudly and yelling slurs at me as my father laid the beatdown of the century on me. This went on for what felt like forever until the scene finally changed again. I was barely able to move and was only standing by some miracle of God as I saw Enkii and an unfamiliar, but much older tiger embracing. Enkii looked much younger, maybe fourteen or fifteen and the older tiger’s stripe pattern was almost identical to hers.

‘ _ Her father’ _

An odd feeling boiled up inside of me, seeing how…  _ functional  _ her relationship with her father was. I was almost…  _ jealous.  _ Before I could ponder the thought anymore, however, my dad appeared in front of me again, swinging his wine bottle down on me.

**Back in reality**

I jolted awake and sat up, stifling a scream. I looked around the room to confirm that I was safe before I started to panic again. The last time I heard Enkii’s voice, she was delivering a blood curdling scream. I looked next to myself and a wave of relief washed over me. There she was, sleeping peacefully.

‘ _ She’s so beautiful’ _

I sighed and looked away, cupping my face with my hands when another familiar feeling bubbled up. This one a more…  _ physical _ feeling.

‘ _ Oh shit’ _

I jumped up from bed and sprinted out of the room and down the hall, failing to notice that rotund figure also creeping around. I made it to the bathroom where I proceeded to vomit violently. The spicy dinner I ate only serving to worsen the burn in my sinuses. I grabbed a glass and filled it with water which I swished around, hoping to get the taste of bile out of my mouth.

I spat the water into the sink then let out an enormous sigh, dragging my hands down my face.

‘ _ What the hell was with that dream’ _

I happened to glance at my reflection in the mirror. I did a double take as I looked back, shocked by how I looked. My eyes were sunken and red and my mouth was downturned in a slight frown. My brows were slightly furrowed and the general emotion that was displayed by my face was sadness.

‘ _ No wonder Enkii was worried.’ _

I exited the bathroom and was greeted by a pair of green eyes looking at me with concern.

“Po?” I whispered.

“Are you alright man?” he asked, whispering as well. He had obviously taken note of my face which I was quickly trying to correct.

“Yeah I’m-I’m fine I just had too much to drink, that’s all.” I lied.

He looked at me suspiciously before moving to the kitchen and continuing to prepare whatever he was preparing. I walked silently back to my room only to be met by Enkii, who was wide awake and looking at me, also with a concerned gaze.

“Kai, what’s wrong?” she asked sympathetically, getting straight to the point.

I remembered my earlier promise of always being honest with my mate so I just sighed and explained my nightmare in detail, recalling everything I felt during it.

At the end, the look on her face was a mix between disturbed, sad, and worried. She grabbed my paw and we sat down on the bed.

“Have you had a nightmare like this before?” She asked.

“Only every time I have an ‘episode’ as Zhikan calls it.”

It was her turn to sigh pensively before she spoke, “Well, we should get some sleep. We’ll figure this out tomorrow.” She spoke softly and kindly. Pulling me down to the bed and burying her face in my chest.

She was fast asleep within minutes while I just laid there, unable to drift into the subconscious, rubbing her back calmly. My thoughts wandered back to my nightmare. What was it about? Who was that familiar bear? Why was I in space? Why did it feel so…  _ real _ ? Why was Enkii there, and what happened to her?

I attempted to find a satisfactory answer for each question, but they ended up un-answered as I was shocked out of my trance by the morning gong, but oddly enough, I heard no ‘good morning master’ from outside the room.

‘ _ It must be an alarm gong to wake everyone before the main gong’ _

That conclusion would make sense considering Kai, Enkii, and Sakaraba all needed to adjust their internal clocks to fit the time zone of the valley.

Enkii began to stir and her eyes fluttered open. She looked at mine and furrowed her brow.

“Kai, did you fall back asleep last night?”

I sighed for like the millionth time this week before reminding myself of my promise, “No, I couldn’t fall asleep, my mind was too active. I was too caught up in thought.”

“Were you thinking about your nightmare?”

I nodded a bit and she hugged me tight before getting up and getting into her casual clothes. I also stood and we turned our backs to each other while we changed. I secretly felt her eyes on my back as I changed, but I couldn’t blame her. I had a difficult time not stealing a peek as well, even though Zhikan had drilled into my mind that women needed their privacy. 

I was finally fully clothed again, wearing a fresh black long sleeve shirt and black training pants designed for cold weather. Enkii was wearing a form fitting, golden qipao with tight fit, black training pants.

“You look extra hot in those clothes.” I said to her, earning a blush and a shy smile.

The mood shifted when she spoke though, “You said Zhikan knows about your nightmares right?” She asked gently, rubbing my back.

One more sigh escaped my lips, “Correct.”

“We need to talk to him today then. He could help us figure out what’s causing them.” She said, looking into my eyes seriously.

“Alright.” I’ll be honest, I really didn’t like the idea of spending more time thinking about my traumatic past and the weird fever dreams I experience, but I also know from experience that it can only help in the long run, so I complied.

“Good.” She pulled me down and kissed me passionately right as the actual morning gong sounded.

“Good morning master!”

Enkii and I exited our room only to be greeted by a smiling Po with an unreadable Shifu next to him. The rest of the five looked in my direction with slight concern.

‘ _ I still look like a zombie don’t I?’ _

I received my answer when we went to the kitchen.

“Kai, are you ya know… ok?” Po asked cautiously.

“Yeah, I just couldn’t sleep at all last night.” 

“You can tell us you know.” Tigress added sympathetically, “We can all sympathize. Many of us are still dealing with our past as well.”

I was brought back to the night my dad died during my visit to the medical hut.

‘You know you can tell me’

These people truly wanted what’s best for me, so why do I feel the need to hold it back, to lie. I don’t get it. On numerous occasions I had been asked to open up and, until just recently with Enkii and occasionally in the past with Zhikan, I never did. Something just told me not to burden them with my problems, instead to give them a jolly attitude and try to ignore it.

‘ _ Probably that diagnosis, what was it? PDD?’ _

Alas, despite all of this, I still just didn’t feel comfortable discussing it with ANYBODY, frankly the only reason I shared it with Enkii is because a functional relationship needs one hundred percent transparency. Deception has no place in love and our relationship is no exception.

“Is it because of last night?” Monkey asked.

I sighed and held my paw up, closing it into a fist, “No, despite how it may seem, those two events are unrelated, I merely couldn’t rest last night because I drank too much when I went to The Pig’s Head yesterday. That is all.”

I ended the sentence somewhat sharply, hoping to avoid further prodding attempts. Luckily for me, something else came up that mercifully stole the spotlight from my mental illness. Sakaraba had just arrived in the kitchen with a beautiful female bear by his side.

“Hello everyone, I am Nomi No Sakaraba,” He introduced himself, “and this is Asami Sakaraba, my wife.”

Everyone introduced themselves and shook paws with Sakaraba and Asami. Po began cooking up breakfast as they took their seats at the rather crowded table.

“Now I must ask if it is alright if Asami lives here as well, if not, I’m sure I can get her a house nearby with my winnin-”

“There is no need to worry about that.” an elderly voice said from the doorframe. Master Shifu entered the kitchen, “Your wife is more than welcome to stay here.”

“Ahh thank you Shifu sama, we are in your debt.” Sakaraba bowed low.

“My pleasure.” Shifu shifted his gaze to Enkii and I, “Kairos, Enkii. I would like to speak with you in private.”

I gave Enkii a look of confusion/worry as we left the kitchen, following Shifu into the Hall of Heroes where he pulled out an old, blue scroll that had “Emperor’s Decree” written on the casing.

He looked between Enkii and I before he cleared his throat, “Kairos, Enkii, I take it you’re doing well?”

“Yes, Grandmaster.” Enkii responded, “Might I ask why you summoned us here?”

“I have multiple reasons.” Shifu said matter-of-factly, “One of which is to congratulate you two on your outstanding performance during the tournament yesterday.” Shifu gave a light smile to the pair.

Enkii smiled back, “Thank you for your words of congratulations, Grandmaster.” 

Shifu nodded at her before continuing, “My second reason is to tell some good news. Kai, because of your unique fighting style and incredible ability, you will be running classes on occasion with Master Sakaraba.”

I nodded in understanding.

“My third reason is to inform you of your first and second missions as masters of the Jade Palace.”

Our eyes widened at that.

‘ _ Already? Huh…’ _

Shifu continued casually, “As I’m sure you know, the Son of Heaven has recently declared opium as an illegal substance due to research done in Kirpon linking it to numerous deaths.” Shifu opened the scroll and pointed to the most recent addition which had non-faded ink, black and bold. 

“However, just like any other law, there are always those that will break it. The emperor has tracked down a rather large cartel that is still producing and selling opium. He has tasked you two with obtaining information and leads that may help him find other cartels of the sort, then he wants you to take it down as non-lethally as possible. Understood?”

We nodded.

“Your second mission will begin after the Winter Feast. The task you have been given is to track down a genetic experiment in the Kirpon Confederacy that the emperor believes might be dangerous. When you find this experiment, you will be expected to subdue it and transfer it to Ip Kong where the emperor wishes to hold it.”

“My final reason for calling you two in here is to discuss your relationship.”

I groaned internally. Of course THAT’S what he needed to talk about. I was half expecting him to say that we were not allowed to maintain a romantic relationship, the other half of my expectations were expecting him to downright tell us that we can’t have any non-business relationship.

“What specifically do you wish to discuss?” I spoke this time, trying to sound as friendly and un-annoyed as possible.

“Well I must set some boundaries for you two to remain here. Your first boundary is that there will be NO public displays of affection. This means no dates, no hugs, no holding hands, no kissing, et cetera.” Enkii looked quite disappointed by that rule, while I felt very disappointed as well, I did my best not to show it.

“The second boundary, there will be no mating or other  _ venereal _ acts within the palace grounds.” The disappointment continued to grow with this one.

‘ _ Shit, we haven’t even talked about sex, yet it’s already being taken away from us’ _

“Third boundary, I will continue to allow you two to sleep in the same room only if you have separate beds.” 

At this point,  **I** couldn’t even hide my disappointment.

“Fourth boundary, if you are both intoxicated in any way, then you must sleep in separate rooms.”

“Fifth boundary, bath stalls are for ONE person at a time. I have already caught each of the other masters disobeying this rule in some way or another, please do not be the next ones. There is a communal bath where the hot spring is near the Master Garden, use that one if you wish to bathe with others. Are we clear on those five things?”

“I guess.” I sighed.

“Good, then you are dismissed.”

We left the Hall of Heroes and began our walk back to the kitchen.

“Pfft, fuckin cunt.” I whispered once Shifu was out of earshot.

Enkii looked at me, “What?”.

“I said the ‘Son of Heaven’ is a fucking cunt.” I said it louder this time, “He indirectly told us that our relationship is against the law unless we live within some bull shit ass boundaries.”

I was already pretty grouchy considering my lack of sleep and shit day so this was just the icing on top.

“Grouch.” She said teasingly, “I do see where you’re coming from, but let’s try and be a bit more optimistic like uhh… he didn’t say we couldn’t make up cute names for each other.” She said innocently.

I looked at her, horrified, “No. No. No pet names.”

“Are you sure? How about I call you ‘Grouch’?” She smiled proudly as if she just made the best nickname ever.

“No.”

“Bubba?”

“No.”

“Honey bun?”

“Fuck no.”

“Cutie?”

“I will, by no means, be called ‘Cutie’.”

“Biscuit?”

“What? I just said no to honey bun, why would I say yes to…  _ biscuit _ ?”

“Uhh because it’s a cute name. Come on Kai, you’ve gotta like one of them.”

“You’re not gonna give up are you?”

“Nope.”

“Fine, keep going.”

xXxXXXxXx

( **The xXxXXXxXx represents a small time skip/location change** )

The rest of the day after our talk with Shifu had been relatively uneventful. We trained a bit in the training hall, I whooped everyone’s ass in sparring, and now Sakaraba and I were teaching the basics of Judo to the other masters.

“So, the first throw we will be doing is osoto gari.” Sakaraba said.

I heard Mantis and Monkey whispering and giggling behind the rest of the masters, so I recruited an old technique I used whenever I taught a class at the academy. I picked up a spare chopstick, lightly tossed it in the air so that it spun a few times before flicking it. It went flying like an arrow and nailed Monkey in the head, making Mantis giggle more until one hit him in the face. They got the message and began to pay attention.

I chuckled internally as we continued to teach the class. Before training, I smoked another dama cigar to clear my monumental hangover from the previous night, and I felt quite a bit better than I did earlier in the day. My friends said I still look like a zombie, but at least now I didn’t feel like one.

Once the attention was brought back to Sakaraba and I, we demonstrated the osoto gari and broke for drilling, and began to fix postures/grips and coach each of the masters.

***knock***

***knock***

***knock***

I went to the training hall door and opened to find Zhikan standing there.

“Hey.”

“Hey. You look like shit.” he stated bluntly.

“Yeah well you don’t look so hot either, dick.” It was true, his eyes were sunken and it looked like his whole face was frowning, “I’m assuming you’re hungover.”

“Yep, I went back to the inn I am staying at last night after our uhh…  _ discussion _ and drank till I was sick at the bar. I came here today instead of tomorrow because Enkii requested that I did.”

‘ _ Enkii?’ _

“Why’d she need you to come up here?”

“She sent a messenger to the inn I’m at to tell me she wishes to discuss your mental health, so I obliged and here I am.”

‘ _ Oh yeah she did say that she wanted to discuss with Zhikan’ _

“Mhm. Well why don’t you come in and help with the class then, afterwards, we can smoke some dama while we talk about uhh me.”

“Sure, what are you guys doing right now?”

“Just osoto gari, then we’re going to do kosoto gari and a few rounds of sparring, then we’ll be done for the day.”

We went back to the group and everyone greeted Zhikan before we finished up the class and did a few rounds of sparring.

After we completed our rounds, the group broke up for free time.

Enkii came to my side and gestured at Zhikan to come with. I quickly ran to my room and grabbed my bag before we headed for somewhere private.

Soon, we happened upon The Pig’s Head, so I guided them in and we found a table. It still held the same vibe as the previous night, but it had a few more people in it.

We ordered a dish to share and some non-alcoholic beverages then got comfortable at the table and began to chat idly. Things like ‘what is your home like’ and ‘when are you getting married’.

Eventually, the food had been finished and now we just sat in awkward silence, no one was bold enough to address the real reason we came here in the first place. Well, no one except Enkii who, within five minutes of silence, just dropped in with, “So, Zhikan, what USUALLY happens when Kai has nightmares?” She spoke intently, obviously more optimistic than Zhikan and I, and there was a reason for that. Zhikan, when I first started showing symptoms of a mental health issue, had sent me to therapist after therapist after god damn therapist and NONE of them did anything for me. I did everything they told me to, I took deep breaths, I changed my diet, I spent time with people, I did my best to talk openly about how I felt, I took the meds, and none of it worked even the slightest bit. Eventually  _ every single one _ had refused to continue with me and instead just slapped us with a diagnosis and a service fee then went on their merry way.

I sighed deeply once I heard the magic words and I reached into my bag to get some dama out. I grabbed the last of my pre rolled cigars and frowned a bit when I saw I only had four left.

‘ _ I need to find a place that sells here’ _

I dropped three of them back in and bit the end off of one before lighting it with a flint sparker and taking a few long drags. I passed it to Zhikan who gladly accepted taking four puffs then passing it to Enkii who took a single puff and coughed wildly, making me chuckle a bit.

“Gah! What is this!? * **cough** * I thought that the dama out of the pipe tasted terrible, but jeez.” Enkii scrutinized the cigar for a minute before passing it back to me.

“It’s tobacco and hemp. I personally enjoy it, it helps me stay awake when I smoke and still has the same effects.” I shrugged as the attention was turned back to Enkii’s first question.

“Anyways, about Kai’s dreams. He usually just wakes up and vomits violently then the next day he’s all shook for a bit until he smokes a little.” Zhikan explained plainly.

Enkii looked at me, her face growing slightly more concerned every second, “Has he ever been diagnosed with another condition?”

Zhikan looked at her oddly before speaking, “I’m not his dad ya know. He’s twenty seven, he can speak for himself, but yes. I sent him to multiple therapists and they all told me that he has ‘persistent depressive disorder’ also known as ‘high-functioning depression’.”

Now Enkii looked very concerned. Zhikan was the next to ask a question.

“Enkii.”

“Yes?”

“Does the term PTSD mean anything to you?”

Her face confirmed his suspicions before she even had to speak, “Yes, yes it does. PTSD or post traumatic stress disorder is the name of a hypothesized condition that occurs from severe physical or mental trauma. In Kirpon, they have done numerous studies all of which indicate that it is a real thing. Most of the people who have symptoms are people who went to war or dealt with domestic abuse…” She looked at me worriedly, “The thing that scares me though, is that the suicide rate is twice as high in people with PTSD.”

Now this… this didn’t surprise me. I can’t count the amount of times I’ve contemplated death or suicide. In fact, I haven’t done it yet only because I would surely regret it, my religion doesn’t allow it, my moral code doesn’t allow it, and, I’d imagine, it would inflict pain on my loved ones, something I refuse to do if I can help it.

I grabbed a small twig that fell off of my seat and lit it on fire, letting it burn to my fingertips and singe my fur. I didn’t even blink when the sharp burn began to spread through my fingertips. I kind of liked it, the pain. It showed that I was still here, that I was still me and that I could feel  _ something. _

I was shocked out of my trance by Enkii tapping my shoulder.

“What?”

She was looking at me again with a bit of confusion in her facial expression, “I asked you what you usually see in these dreams and what are the events that lead up to it?” She continued to stare at the burnt twig still in my hands. I dropped it off the side of the table and sighed again.

“Well, typically I just see my dad the way I last saw him, you know, dead. I’m almost always in my house and this absolutely acrid stench emanates from my father. Usually he pounces on me and I wake up, but this most recent one, I was in the dream for the entirety of the beating.” I stared at the table deep in thought, “The events that lead up to my nightmares almost always have something to do with revisiting my childhood. It can be anything from talking about it to seeing my old house, but many times, I also just…  _ have  _ them. Nothing special happens during the day or beforehand, but I still have them.” 

I took a few puffs of the cigar as I let that sink in. Enkii was staring pensively at the embers at the end of the cigar.

“I’m not gonna kill myself you know.” I added bluntly.

She appeared shocked that I could read her so well. It was quite easy really, I mean she HEAVILY implied that that’s what she thought when she spoke about PTSD.

“I-I never said  _ that _ .” She sounded quite sad, as if the mere thought of me committing suicide brought her great pain.

Of course, I immediately felt terrible for making her sad, though, being the life sucker of the group isn’t particularly new to me. I was, actually, quite surprised that she even cared. I know and have known that she does care for me, but I’ve been burned and used a lot in the past. My experience tells me that no one cares/loves me, at least, not as much as I care about them. Is that sad? Is it sad that I was shocked that anybody other than Zhikan actually gave a fuck about me? Is it sad that I never thought anyone would miss me when I died, that my death would bring them great sadness, and my life brings them happiness? Is it sad that, despite all of this, I still hold onto my doubts? Perhaps I read too deep into her facial expression and she DOESN’T actually care, what then? I mean, how could anybody care about ME like ME ME. I am basically just a sack of meat that can talk, not a  _ person _ . Enkii is a person, Zhikan is a person, me, I’m not really anything. I’m just a  _ thing _ that happened at some point. I’m no one important, no one is better off for having known me and I haven’t changed the world in a good way, so why  _ me _ ? What could someone possibly see in  _ me _ ?

To be honest, all these thoughts have become so frequent, so ingrained in me, that I don’t even feel sad about them anymore. To me they’re just facts, things that have always been and always will be. I honestly haven’t even felt depressed for a while, though, last night definitely triggered something in me. If there is one piece of useful information that those therapists gave me, it would be that a depressive episode can be triggered by anything and lasts for a long time before it suddenly disappears.

Enkii was tapping me on my shoulder again. Why was I spacing out so much?

“Kai?” she sounded worried, “Kai, tell me what you’re thinking about, it’s important.”

I fumbled my words like a total amateur, “I-I was just thinking about my nightmare again.”

Well, I guess I’m also a hypocrite now. Not one day ago I was preaching my one hundred percent transparency bullshit and now here I am violating it like a total degenerate. I’ll give myself some credit though because I held back my real thoughts so that Enkii wouldn’t get any sadder which, now that I think about it, isn’t that great of a justification considering the fact that she was probably fully prepared to feel like shit when she asked for total honesty.

“Kai!”

I fucking spaced out again.

“Jesus Christ why do I keep spacing out!?” I slapped myself a few times.

‘ _ Ok okokok, come on Kai, fucking focus your shitty self on the conversation’ _

If Enkii looked concerned before, this was a whole new level. She looked so… sad. I couldn’t bear to see her like that so I tried to lift her mood.

“Enkii, don’t look so sad. I’m fine, really.” another lie.

She looked at me and her lips quivered a bit before tears began to exit her eyes.

I was totally shredding my mind to pieces now.

‘ _ What the fuck is wrong with you you fucking worthless cunt? Like seriously, how do you manage to ruin everything, it’s fucked up. You ruined the party last night, you ruined yourself in the same night, and now your fucking ruining the only good thing that’s ever come into your fucking worthless, undesirable life. Really, it’s pathetic, you hurt the people around you then you feel bad for yourself for like a day then you repeat the process the next day. Every bit of self-loathing you’ve ever experienced is totally deserved for someone like you. The people around you would probably be better off if you just closed yourself off again, at least then people wouldn’t have the displeasure of gazing into the black hole that you are.’ _

‘ _ FUCKING AGAIN WITH THE FUCKING SPACING OUT’ _

Enkii was now crying and Zhikan was gesturing for me to comfort her. I did my best I guess. I scooted my chair over to her and brought her into an embrace which she gladly accepted, wetting my shirt with her tears. Suddenly she spoke, her voice was eerily calm despite the warm tears that continued to flow from her eyes, “Kai, I can tell you’re lying. I know that you aren’t fine. I’m trying to help you through this, but it takes cooperation. I need you to know that I care about YOU, so does Zhikan, and so does everyone else in the palace, so please just let us help you.” 

A lump had formed in my throat from that sentence, the last time someone had expressed such genuine  _ care _ was when Zhikan took me into his school. Of course there were other times, but none so pure and raw as this one.

“Ok.”

With that we stood up, paid the bill, finished the cigar, and left into the night.

**So that’s chapter eight for y'all. I didn’t really know how to phrase all the facts about mental health and shit, so I just kinda shoehorned them in sloppily, I hope you don’t mind. Also I am, by no means, an expert when it comes to things like mental health, so I’m mostly basing this off of MY experience with two particular disorders (I’m sure you can guess which ones). I also apologize for the mood change and I promise it will be a bit more light-hearted next chapter. We also just got introduced to a new “character” in the form of the voice in Kai’s head. In future chapters, this will play a role as well. Please stay safe, and, if you didn’t like anything about this chapter or any of the other chapters, feel free to PM me or drop a review. Review/Favorite and peace! :|**

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  



	9. Chapter 9

**Warning: There are some borderline lemons in this chapter**

**I’m attempting to make this chapter a little more comedic and less abysmal than the last two chapters, but I am also trying to illustrate some classic symptoms of depression. In this chapter the symptom is unwarranted aggression and poor decision making.**

**Chapter 9**

**One Step Forward, Two steps back**

We bid farewell to Zhikan and returned to the palace, Enkii essentially using me as a coat to shield her from the cold air.

Something felt…  _ different _ between us, as if we’d reached some whole new level of intimacy tonight, as if we were truly a  _ couple  _ now.

The feeling was apparently mutual as Enkii buried herself into my fur uninvited, I wrapped my arm around her as we reached the palace steps. When we reached the top, I wanted to do something relaxing.

“I think I’m gonna go bathe.” I said plainly, making way towards the bath house.

“Why? You aren’t really dirty or anything.” Enkii asked innocently.

“Well, actually, I haven’t bathed since the tournament, but thanks for telling me that I don’t stink.”

I said sardonically.

She laughed a little, definitely because of the dama she smoked because that joke wasn’t funny at all.

I continued to march up the hill to the bath house, failing to notice the orange and black shadow following me. I reached the stall that I had used before and walked in, sighing as a wave of humid air washed over me, replacing the cold with a comforting warmth.

I dropped my bag and pulled out my pipe and some more dama as well as a change of clothes.

I cleared the vacant bath water and refilled it with fresh water and dropped five of the stones from the fireplace in before smoking a few bowls and stripping naked. I sat at the edge and packed up my pipe while testing the water temperature. It was just barely not scalding hot, the perfect temperature, so I, lye soap in hand, slid into the water, releasing a deep sigh as a shiver ran up my back. I braced my arms on the edge and leaned my head back only to be greeted by a pair of hazel eyes. My eyes widened and I flew forward, covering my little guy with my large paws.

“WHAT THE FUCK!” I almost shouted as I looked at Enkii, “Why are you in here!?”

She looked at me and smiled  _ mischievously, _ “Oh, no reason. I just happened to stumble in here behind you and I figured I may as well stick around, seeing as I’m your mate and all.” she lied horribly on purpose. Of course she came here intentionally, but for what I wasn’t quite sure…  _ yet. _

I facepalmed with one of my paws still being very careful to keep little Kai covered up, “Enkii, you’re high as shit.” I looked up from my paw and deadpanned, “Seriously, why are you in here?”

She fake pouted, “Come on Kai, I know you felt the same thing I did out there. We feel closer somehow, as if we’ve reached a new stage of partnership, so I should be able to take a bath with my favorite biscuit,” I cringed HARD on that one, I had totally forgotten that the nickname we settled on was biscuit. I shuddered a bit as I remembered that ‘bubba’ was a close second, “and I figured since I’d be bathing with you, I could kill two birds with one stone.” I was beginning to get where this was going.

“What do you mean by that.” I asked, trying to hide my newfound excitement.

She looked at me seductively beginning to undo her clothes, “You know Kai, earlier this morning when you said I looked hot in these clothes,” she gestured at her outfit, “I felt something  _ new _ . It was a carnal feeling and it made me decide that perhaps it’s time we make the title of ‘mate’ official.”

I cringed slightly, she obviously wasn’t very experienced at using her words to get people in the mood. I mulled over the thought for a bit when suddenly her clothes and wraps dropped, revealing her totally nude body.

My earlier complaints instantly vaporized as I feasted my eyes on her body. I imagine some color left my face as I felt much blood rush, well,  _ somewhere else _ .

Unfortunately, her seductive charm was ruined the instant her toe touched the water.

“Gah! Why is the water so hot!?” she asked, pulling her foot away in surprise.

I shrugged as I looked at her, “It’s the temperature I like.”

She looked at me, her confidence from seconds ago now completely gone and replaced with a shy blush as she attempted to cover her breasts as if she was just now realizing she was indecent. The whole thing was rather cute and made me chuckle a little. I stood up from my spot and drained a little of the water and added some fresh, cool water into the mix.

I looked back at Enki and attempted to meet her eyes, but was somewhat surprised to see that her gaze had been directed somewhere that was, let’s just say, NOT my eyes. She met my gaze and her eyes were wide. There was something else in there too, though I couldn’t quite put my finger on it.

I looked down at what she was staring at before meeting her gaze.

‘ _ Yikes, settle down little guy!’ _

I grinned sheepishly, scratching the back of my neck. Of course I had forgotten to cover up the twenty two centimeter monolith that stood between my legs.

Enkii hopped into the bath as soon as I sat back down, her previous embarrassment seemingly melted. She moved over to me and leaned her head on my shoulder, purring softly as she traced her claw down my chest and abdomen. She planted a sloppy kiss on my lips as I shifted our position, turning to face her and pressing her back gently against the wall of the tub.

“Have you ever done this before?” I whispered into her ear.

Her blush deepened and she looked away, “No I haven’t actually mated before, but I have done  _ other things _ , and I’ve also been taught by some of my girlfriends some things that might improve the experience.”

‘ _ A-ha! A virgin’ _

“Are you really ready to do this? I mean we’ve only been dating for a little over a week.” I asked.

“Yes, but we’ve spent as much time together in that little over a week as a normal couple spends together in like three months.”

“So you are ready?”

She nodded her head and gave a shy, sheepish smile.

I stared into her eyes and smiled wickedly, “Allow me to take the lead then.”

I began to run my hands all over her body feeling every curve. Just when I was about to reach the merchandise, however, Enkii's ear twitched and my attention was drawn to the pitter patter of small footsteps moving towards the door swiftly. Our eyes widened and I instantly scrambled to hide Enkii. Within seconds she was pressed against the tub wall by my back as I used my bulk to hide her smaller form. I did my best to look casual, but that was easier said than done when you could feel the heartbeat and breath of the naked woman pressed up against you.

The door flew open and before me stood the grandmaster himself, eyes narrowed and chin pointed upward.

He tried to look as if he had opened the door accidentally, but failed miserably. I could see his gaze dart around the room before he looked at me in mock surprise, “Oh! Forgive me, Master Kairos, I thought this wasn’t occupied.”

A furious blush formed across my face because of the sheer absurdity of the situation, and I tried my best to soften the stone dragon below my waist.

He swept the room once more, “I will leave you to it then.” he left, but I knew his game. I didn’t shift from my spot for the next thirty seconds and, sure enough, within ten or so he had thrown the door open again yelling “AHA!” only to find me deadpanning at him and still in the same spot. Now it was Shifu’s turn to look embarrassed as he quickly scurried out of the bath house. I waited until the pitter patter of his footsteps had disappeared before grabbing a stick and jamming it under the door as a form of rudimentary lock. 

I sighed as I leaned back and looked at Enkii. A silent look of agreement solidified that the mood was ruined and now we were just sitting there in silence. I grabbed my soap and cleaned myself off before hopping out and drying off. Enkii did the same then we changed into clean clothes and left the same way we did previously.

I made it to our room and plopped down on my bed, staring at the wall absently and listening to the muffled rumbles of the other occupants chatting in the kitchen. I sat there for maybe ten minutes when I was brought back to reality by a warm pair of paws on my shoulders. Enkii leaned forward and bit my ear playfully, giggling a little as she moved to my front and sat on my lap, wrapping her arms around my neck and pulling me into a kiss. When we released, I chuckled lightly and began to run my hands over her curves again.

We continued like this for three minutes before Shifu had appeared at our door again.

He gave us an angry glare before he spoke through clenched teeth, “Separate. Beds.”

He exited and stormed away as I face palmed and groaned.

“What a kill-joy.” I looked into Enkii’s eyes, “Looks like we’ll just have to do this sometime else, when there’s less  _ risk  _ involved.”

Enkii smiled seductively and ran her claw down my chest again, “Who says we have to wait?”

My grin returned only to be shut down by her flicking my forehead playfully and hopping up, grinning mischievously as she pulled her bed back to the other side of the room and laid down. 

I scoffed humorously, “You’re such a tease.”

The only response I got was a light giggle as her gleeful gaze met mine. We just looked at each other for a while before she spoke, “I love you.”

Woah, I was not expecting that. My mind went into panic mode as a rush of feelings came flying over me. I had to take a second before responding, “I love you too.”

An odd warmth had spread over my body and a mild joy crept through my heart. I laid down on my side and faded into the night.

xXXXxXXXx

I woke to the warning gong and cold morning air. I blinked a few times and yawned before attempting to sit up.

‘ _ Huh that’s odd.’ _

I couldn’t sit up because of some extra weight that I didn’t notice before, I looked down and smiled a bit when I saw that Enkii had snuck into my bed during the night. She must’ve been cold because she was wrapped in a thick wool blanket, cleaving to my torso tightly and shivering furiously. I tried to push her off me a bit so I could get up, but was met with a ‘mmph’ of denial and a tighter hug. I sighed happily and wrapped my arms around her, perfectly content with laying here all day and not doing anything else. Apparently Enkii was too because she was now purring quietly with a satisfied look on her face and her shivering had ceased, but then an idea crossed my mind and a sinister smile overtook my face.

I pulled Enkii into a deep hug which she gladly accepted.

‘ _ She fell for it _ ’

As soon as my arms were securely around her, I lurched forward and quickly stood out of bed. Enkii yelped in shock and her eyes flew open as I began to laugh.

“You’re so mean.” She pouted, still clutching my warm body.

“You had to wake up at some point.” I smiled mischievously, “I just sped up the process.”

She gave me a light punch on the arm before releasing me and shivering her way into warmer clothes. I cracked my neck and knuckles, releasing a sigh of relief as my stiffness was relieved. 

I felt pretty good, better than I usually feel when I wake up in fact. My body wasn’t sore from working out, my winter coat was beginning to come in so I was well insulated, my sleep was restful and without nightmares, and Enkii had said she loved… me… 

Oh yeah,  _ that  _ happened.

Many indescribable feelings welled up inside of me when I thought about it, but, after the initial high had worn off, they were replaced with one stupid feeling that I could never avoid in situations like this. Doubt.

Is it really love that she feels for me? Is it really love that I feel for her? How can I know if I don’t just like her for her beauty and all the other stuff I like her for are just delusions? What if she only likes the things superficial about me?

I could feel the happiness from the previous few minutes evaporate as my depression and anxiety overtook me again.

‘ _ I need to get less cynical’ _

I was brought out of my thoughts by Enkii pulling me into a fierce kiss just before the morning gong rang.

I decided to mull over my thoughts later, now was the time to act.

We exited the room and stood straight at attention, “Good morning master!”

Po was standing with his usual dumb grin and Shifu stood stiffly behind him looking positively irate.

“Today there will be no training,” Po announced, everyone’s faces turned happy only to revert back when he spoke next, “because today is maitenance day! As I’m sure you can guess, the palace needs upkeep and Zeng can’t do  _ everything _ . Today, each of you will assist in assorted public tasks such as training hall repair and private tasks such as washing your clothes.” Po looked around and smiled, “We also will be having construction done on the training hall over the coming months.”

This intrigued everyone again.

“What for?” Tigress asked.

Everyone looked at him expectantly, “We will be having a new section built with new steel dummies for Kai to practice on because otherwise we’d have to clean and repair the training hall daily. Any other questions? Good, you have one hour to eat and get ready.” Po turned around and walked off somewhere, probably to meditate. 

I began towards the kitchen, but was stopped by Shifu who stood before me, glaring.

“One day here and you already violate the rules! I said separate beds!” he said through gritted teeth.

Enkii’s eyes widened, “H-how did you kno-” 

“These aren’t just decorations!” he cut her off and pointed at his ears, “I can hear everything you say from the grandmaster’s quarters and when I heard your discussion I chose to investigate. I saw that you two were in separate beds when I looked in so I waited until morning and lo and behold, there she is, clinging onto you like a tumor!”

My eye twitched as I saw Sakaraba passing by, “Hey Nomi!”

He turned around, “Kai-san.”

“Did you sleep in the same bed as Asami last night?”

“Yes I did.”

I deadpanned at Shifu and gestured at Sakaraba, “That’s fine but Enkii and I sleeping together isn’t?”

If there was one thing I couldn’t stand, it was hypocrisy, and between that and how Shifu acted the night before, I was beginning to lose my, rather abundant, patience.

“ _ They _ are married, you two are not. Only one of them is a Jade Palace warrior as well.”

‘ _ This fucking guy _ ’

“You realize he’s only maybe two or three years older than Enkii and I right? If he can be trusted to be responsible, why can’t we?” I asked, my irritation creeping into my voice as I leaned against the wall and crossed my arms.

“You two are, as I said, NOT married. I shouldn’t have to explain that! Not only that, but you two are at the peak of your breeding years, and we can’t have a child running around the Jade Palace!” Shifu looked even more angry now, “Since you two can’t seem to get a grip on the rules, I will be monitoring  _ any _ time you two spend alone until you can.”

Now I was pissed and my eyes must’ve shown it because Enkii grabbed my paw as if to say ‘don’t’.

“That’s creepy, even by your standards.” I kept myself calm, trying my best to not fly off the handle, but I couldn’t help but let a little venom sneak in.

“Have you no respect!?” he yelled at me, smacking my head with his staff.

Now it was on. He chose a  _ very _ poor time to piss me off considering my depressive episode, cluttered thoughts, and enormous anxiety.

I chuckled before speaking, “That sounds about right. I am a firm believer in the idea that respect is given where respect is deserved, and thus far, you have yet to earn ANY rather opting to slowly lose it.” I said bluntly.

His glare had reached a whole new level. Let’s just say, if looks could kill, I would be long dead by now, “HOW DARE YOU! I AM YOU GRANDMASTER!”   
  


I scoffed, “I don’t give a fuck. As far as I’m concerned, your grandmaster title is arbitrary. Titles mean NOTHING to me. I’ve met plenty of wretched nobles and many noble thieves. Your title doesn’t mean shit if your character doesn’t match up. Don’t expect me to suck your racoon dick just because you use a title to validate yourself.”

Enkii was looking at both of us anxiously.

“Kairos,” his voice had become eerily calm, “please accompany me to the training hall.”

I followed silently.

We reached the hall and Shifu turned to face me, “This is not the first time I’ve encountered such sass, both Tigress and Tai Lung we’re just the same as you and the only way to get rid of it is to beat it out of you.”

I laughed and readied myself, “Ok bud.”

Suddenly he was attacking, anybody else would have been hard pressed to block his strikes let alone counter, but I was able to block all of them easily with one paw. His frustration was obviously growing with each missed strike, until he began to use his staff as a weapon. I continued to casually block with a bored expression until he jumped back and summoned his chi. A golden turtle appeared behind him doing the same stance and the staff began to glow a warm golden color. He shot forward at lightning speeds, aiming for a nerve point on my torso. I easily evaded and grabbed the staff, ignoring the white hot burn of the chi infused wood on my palm. I yanked Shifu towards me and flicked his forehead with my left paw, sending him flying to the other end of the hall. I grabbed the still glowing staff and vaulted it like a spear, producing a colossal boom as it rocketed towards the red panda, the prongs at the end embedding themselves in the wall behind Shifu, pinning him without actually stabbing.

He grunted and gave me a tired glare before pulling his staff and storming out.

I huffed and walked out. I decided to get straight to work, I wasn’t hungry anymore.

I grabbed my bag and gave a test sniff, it smelled of old clothes and a little of sweat, but it wasn’t terrible. I walked to the bath house and filled a tub with water before adding peach leaves and a little bit of lye as it began to heat up. Once it was hot enough, I dunked my clothes and swished them around for ten minutes, making sure they were entirely soaked through and smelled faintly of peach.

After this, I hung them on the drying rack in front of the fireplace and left to find something else to do.

I spent the rest of the day grumbling and walking around. Performing menial tasks and digesting my thoughts to pass the time.

My mind was brought back to the thoughts I had when I first woke up as I grabbed my now dried clothes and made my way back to my room to get ready to sleep.

‘ _ I love you’ _

She had said that to me, but did she really mean it? Does she really love me? Would she be by my side no matter what? Would she still date me if I lost all my money or grew fat?

These questions plagued my mind like maggots, slowly eating through my psyche until I couldn’t handle it anymore.

I stopped in front of the door to my room where Enkii was already asleep, and my throat began to tighten as I forced myself to not cry. I leaned forward and braced my hands on the wooden beams which I began to squeeze until they cracked slightly. I shut my eyes tight and took a deep breath, painting my face back into its usual stony facade before entering the room quietly.

I sat on my bed and sighed deeply.

I looked down at my abs and noticed how they felt slightly…  _ off. _ They felt softer, and it wasn’t just because of my winter coat, no they had formed a thin layer of fat on them and I could feel it.

I deadpanned. Bears are known for being able to gain and hold weight, specifically fat weight, very easily and as such, keeping a figure like mine took extreme dedication and willpower.

I clenched my teeth in anger and pressed my claws into my palms, drawing blood.

I stood up quickly and moved out of the room, storming towards the forest nearby. I walked up to a tree and delivered a single punch with all of my power behind it releasing a scream of rage. The tree disintegrated along with any surrounding trees for a three hundred meter radius, leaving a bare ditch in the ground where they once stood.

I fell to my knees and clutched my aching arm, I definitely shattered my wrist doing that. I popped it back into place, but a painful throb emanated through my arm.

I knelt there, breathing heavily until I felt a pair of arms wrap me in a hug from behind. I turned and saw Enkii’s face staring back at me. She looked sad again, but she managed to smile as she pulled out my pipe and some dama.

I took the pipe and sighed, leaning into her embrace. I lit the dama and smoked a bit. She continued to sit there, holding me and rubbing my shoulder. 

Finally she spoke, her voice was warm and sympathetic, “Kai, what’s wrong?”

I leaned forward out of her embrace and rubbed my aching wrist, “I-I’m not sure. I think that these last three days have just been pretty shit overall. I mean first I was plunged into another episode, then I drank myself into oblivion, then I had that weird ass nightmare, then I spent most of yesterday hungover, then I started to feel even more drained and broken emotionally, and now Shifu won’t give us any privacy, he decided to fight me, and I’m starting to get fat.” I dragged my hands down my face dejectedly.

Enkii looked bewildered, “Fat?”

“Yes, fat. Can you not tell.?”

“Not at all.”

“Are you sure, poke one of my abs.”

She poked one and shook her head at me.

“Really?” I asked.

She nodded.

“Ok, well  _ I _ can feel it which is all I need for it to bother me.”

I rested my head on my hands and stared off into the distance, lost in the random cacophony of high thoughts that plagued my brain.

**First Person POV: Enkii**

Kai was really starting to worry me. I tried my best to hide it, but I couldn’t help but think that maybe he knew.

I leaned forward to touch him on the shoulder after a few minutes of sitting in silence. When my paw made contact, he startled.

He sat stiff for a few moments before sighing deeply and standing up, scooping me up and carrying me back to our room. I wrapped my arms around his neck and solemnly hugged him, attempting to provide some meager amount of comfort.

We reached our room and Kai plopped down on his bed, I wanted to go and lay next to him, but decided against it considering how Shifu had reacted earlier that day.

“Goodnight Kai.” I whispered as I wrapped myself up in the thick, wool blankets on my bed and laid down to begin another cold night.

“Goodnight, Enkii.” I heard Kai grumble from his bed.

I turned over and closed my eyes to begin the long process of falling asleep in the bitter cold. Kirpon isn’t exactly known for its cold weather, Ulta Fide even less so which, unfortunately, also means that I don’t really have a ‘winter mode’ like Kai does. This means I spend many nights shivering until I fall asleep from exhaustion. In the recent past, Kai has always been a source of unbridled warmth, but with the rules Shifu put in place, I wasn’t allowed to share a bed with him.

I tossed and turned for hours until I gave up and just took to laying on my bed, shivering, with my eyes open. I don’t know why I couldn’t sleep even with how tired I was. The room just felt…  _ odd _ as if it was being watched. By chance, I happened to glance out the window, and my heart almost stopped at what I saw.

There was a black wolf staring in, his yellow orbs fixed on Kai. My heartrate ramped up and I was starting to get nervous. My thoughts were jumbled and I was hyperventilating.

In my chaotic stupor, I slipped out of bed and gently poked Kai on the side. Instantly his eyes were wide open and staring up at mine. I must’ve looked pretty shook because he immediately looked concerned.

“What is it?” He whispered.

I couldn’t muster words, I could only point a shaking finger at the window. Kai looked at it and instantly his eyes went wide and he was out of bed. I looked at the wolf again and was disturbed by the fact that he hadn’t moved a millimeter this whole time. His eyes were still fixed on Kai with a terrifying expression, but the rest of him didn’t move at all.

“Stay here.” I heard Kai’s low voice growl next to me and in an instant, he had vanished silently.

I waited, and waited, and waited. I really didn’t like the vibe I was getting from this situation. Even though it could only have been thirty seconds since Kai left, it felt like it had been hours. I started hyperventilating again and my thoughts became irrational. My sense of anxiety and panic started to ramp up rapidly as I imagined the worst. Images of Kai’s mangled body began to flash through my mind, causing a few tears to fall from my eyes as I clutched my temples.

Suddenly I felt large paws on my shoulders shaking me, and I jolted out of my horrifying trance to be met with the tired, worried face of Kai.

“What’s wrong?” He asked, obviously concerned.

It took me a moment to regain my composure enough. I looked at the window to see that the wolf was gone. A wave of relief washed over me seeing that Kai was all right. I pulled him into a great hug and held him there for a while.

I don’t know what was with that wolf, but something about him felt off. Something in his expression was reminiscent of a madman or a psychopath, and his whole presence felt chaotic. For some reason, when he was there it felt as though anything could go horribly wrong at any moment, and that feeling inspired terror deep within me, to the point that I felt not even Kai could win against it.

I finally released Kai and got back into my bed. I noticed Kai continued to stay where he was, leaning against the wall.

“What are you doing?” I asked.

“I’m gonna stay up to make sure that dude doesn’t return and compromise your safety.” He stated, pulling a cigar from his bag and lighting it, “I’ll be fine, I’ve gone for longer without sleeping.”

I hesitated for a moment then rolled back onto my side, slowly drifting into the night.

**Enkii’s Dream**

I woke up in my bed, but something felt off. In fact, it actually felt exactly like it did when that wolf had first shown up.

I looked at the window, and to my horror, there he was, the same creepy expression fixed on his face. I jumped out of bed and ran over to Kai to wake him up.

I poked him several times and got nothing, so I took to shaking and yelling at him, still nothing.

In a final effort to wake him, I rolled him over, but I leaped back in shock at what I saw. His face had been completely sliced off, leaving a gory cross section in its place. I brought my paws to my mouth as I felt like I was going to be sick. Tears were falling out of my eyes as the room twisted and warped sickeningly around me and a horrible ringing sound was echoing through the room. Then  _ he  _ spoke.

“Ahh, the future is tough to handle huh?” His voice was terrifying, low and dark like Kai’s, but with more venom.

Suddenly the wolf was in the room, shrouded in a purple haze that soon overtook the room.

“Fortunately, this isn’t how the future has to be. Tell Kairos to visit the Dungan Pass sometime will you?” 

I didn’t get a chance to respond as the wolf disappeared and everything went black.

**Reality**

I woke up still in my bed, and I immediately looked to see if Kai was alright. He was still leaning against the wall, smoking his cigar.

I looked out the window for a third time and was relieved to see no wolf standing there. I still felt a bit ill and the sight of faceless Kai was still fresh in my mind, but I was able to ignore it since I could now see that Kai was alright.

I shuddered as I recalled the nightmare.

“ _ Tell Kairos to visit the Dungan Pass sometime…” _

I sat up slowly and spoke to Kai.

“Kai,” He startled a bit, but was immediately at my bedside, “I need to talk to you about something.”

I could see his face grow anxious. It was understandable considering that the usual context those words are used in are breakups, but I digress.

He quickly rid his face of visible emotion, “What’s wrong?”

I proceeded to describe my dream in detail, making certain to communicate the wolf’s message to Kai. He seemed both relieved and concerned by the content of the discussion.

“Dungan Pass huh?” He began to pace the room absently, deep in thought.

“Are you going to obey him?” I asked.

He looked at me like I just said the stupidest thing ever, “Fuck no. Why would I go to some unknown place where soom creepy, stalker, cook is waiting for me? That's how you get killed, Enkii, and I don’t feel very suicidal at the moment.”

I nodded, his logic was sound. I sighed and laid back down.

_ So much to do… _

**First Person POV: Kai**

What the fuck was this night?

So much fucking bullshit all in one night.

Actually, this whole week has had an inordinate amount of shit for me to deal with, but this whole day has easily been the worst. First dickhead Shifu, then I did hundreds of menial tasks, then I got overwhelmed by stress and anxiety and broke my wrist by annihilating a forest, and now some ultra creepy wolf stalker is watching us.

Oddly enough I didn’t feel very angry, I just felt sad and deflated. I can’t complain too much though since this was the mood I was the most comfortable in.

I looked over at Enkii’s beautiful self. The sight brought me warmth but also stress as I recalled my previous thoughts.

After staring at Enkii like a perv for a few minutes, I just stood there, listening to the wind outside and mentally preparing myself for a long, trudge through the upcoming day.

I stood there for a long time before I was startled by the gong.

A great sigh escaped my lips as I rubbed my tired eyes and lifted Enkii out of bed. She brought me into a hug which I needed pretty badly. I stood there, holding her small frame for a long time until the second gong came and we were both at attention in front of the room only to find that nobody else was there either. We walked down the hall and looked around, not finding any evidence of the other masters until we heard a bit of noise coming from the gate area.

We walked over to the gate and saw Zhikan and the five and Po waiting by a large wagon, similar to the one Enkii and I had shared on the way up though this one was a bit larger and had two oxen pulling it. I could see that the five and Po all had light travel bags and Zhikan looked like he was getting ready to leave as well.

We joined the group in confusion.

“What’s going on?” I asked the group.

Po answered, “Zhikan is inviting us to his wedding in a few days, so we’re all making the journey down there.”

Oh yeah, I forgot that I still needed to go back to Lu Shi to get my shit and that Zhikan wanted my friends to come to the wedding as well.

“Where’s Sakaraba?”

“Oh he can’t come because he’s going back to Japan to sort some things out with the Makai and getting his things before he comes back to live here.” Po answered.

I nodded in understanding, “How far will the wagon take us?

Zhikan spoke this time, “They’ll only be taking us to Kirpon and from there we will walk to Lu Shi. It’s only four hundred or so kilometers, so we should be able to make it within three or four days.”

We waited around for a bit as the last preparations were made before hopping into the wagon and finding a spot. Surprisingly, due to Po’s hundreds of cooking supplies, there wasn’t ample seating for each person to have their own spot. Fortunately, Enkii and I were able to circumnavigate this problem by sitting in the same spot, as in her sitting on my lap. She was able to get quite comfortable as well considering I am probably two and a half times her size. But not everyone in the wagon was a couple and, as such, it took an extra few minutes of shifting and shuffling around before everybody could consider themselves comfortable.

Finally we started moving, and to say that the atmosphere was awkward would be a gross understatement. Eventually some conversation started, though it was just Zhikan joking around with Mantis and Po.

I decided that, since there wasn’t really anything else to do, I would make up for the sleep I lost the night before Apparently, Enkii had the same idea as she was already snoozing on top of me, her body pressed into my fur.

I closed my eyes and let the relatively consistent bumps and the rocking of the wagon lull me to sleep, my head resting on top of Enkii’s.

I woke up when the motion stopped and the oxen opened the back of the wagon letting a rush of dry, warm air into the cooler wagon. Thankfully, my sleep was dreamless and now I felt decently refreshed. Enkii had already been awake for an hour or so, but chose to just enjoy the weight of my head on top of hers.

We got out of the wagon and looked around. We were in a small village, about the size of Lu Shi, maybe smaller. The village had decently high wooden walls constructed around the perimeter.

“What village is this?” I asked one of the oxen.

“We are currently in Shin Shui, a small village that’s supported by the Silk Road traders that come here for silk. This is our only stop before Kirpon. There is an inn just over there,” He pointed a hoof at a small but nice building just down the road, “that you guys will be staying in for the night.”

I thanked him for the information and walked back to the wagon to grab my small bag before breaking off from the rest of the group with Enkii as we went to find something to do until night.

I looked around the village a bit, “So what do you wanna do?”

“Hmm… let’s go on a date.” She said with a smile.

“Date? It would be our first one I suppose, but that still doesn’t solve our problem.”

So we just started walking, holding paws and looking for shit to do. We continued like this for maybe thirty minutes when we stumbled upon a small shop.

We looked around at the items for a bit before finding something. What we ended up finding was a two piece necklace set. One of them was in the shape of the Yin and made out of a gorgeous sapphire gemstone while the other was the Yang made out of an equally pretty ruby. I grabbed them, claiming the sapphire one and making the purchase.

We exited the shop and equipped our new item, fitting the two pieces together a few times before continuing the date.

We passed a restaurant where the others were all sitting , watching Po shove a disgusting amount of dumplings down his gullet.

“I swear to God one day Po is gonna eat a person by accident.” I said jokingly as we watched, somewhat in awe of the giant panda.

Enkii chuckled a little.

I noticed her chuckle, so I kept the joke running, “Like seriously, look at that man! He’s got to have at least forty in his mouth by now. Aw now look, he can’t even fit anymore.”

Her laughter was beginning to pick up a bit as I continued.

“Holy cow or erhm panda. How many smaller versions of himself is he gonna suck down the enormous gulch that exists inside him.” In one great swallow, all forty or so dumplings disappeared and I gave Enkii a look of exaggerated shock.

Enkii was now completely cracking up and I didn’t really know why. My jokes weren’t that funny.

I heard Po’s speak to the table, “Do you guys wanna see how I learned to eat in the secret village?”

He was met with ‘yes’s from everyone except Tigress and Viper who both immediately said ‘no’.

“What the fuck?” I asked in somewhat joking, but mostly actual disgust as Po shoved dumplings in his move by the bowl full.

“If I was hungry earlier, I’m not anymore.” 

While I was mostly playing for laughs still, there was an element of truth to that. Po was astonishingly disgusting to watch and listen to while eating.

We began to walk away from the restaurant to continue our date. We stopped and grabbed some alcoholic beverages from a noodle cart and sat down at one of the open tables.

“Enkii, you have two words to describe Po’s eating, go.” I challenged.

“Alright… uhh horrifying gluttony.” She shrugged and began to take a sip of her drink.

“Reverse childbirth.” 

The instant I said that she spat her drink all over me and began furiously laugh-coughing.

“That * **cough* *cough*** caught me off guard.” She said after she finished laughing.

I looked at her and wiped my face dramatically before pounding my drink.

We sat there just chatting about random shit for a few minutes before getting up and getting a portrait done then heading off to find something else to do.

It was dark by now and most of the restaurants and bars were beginning to fill up with couples and families. There was also a greater density of people than I would normally expect from such a small village, but I attributed it to the upcoming winter feast and the Christian holiday Christmas.

Soon we happened upon a strange looking tent that said “Suruk’s Mystics” on the front. I looked at Enkii.

“Might be fun.” She nodded and we entered the tent.

The inside was somewhat claustrophobic with the random clutter of sorcery crap. I mean this person had the works, animal parts, preserved eyeballs, feathers, dolls, bones, vials, shrunken heads, bowls with weird runes, blades, scrolls, and the list goes on.

I have been on many a date in my time, and many of them ended up in places like this which tend to be pretty creepy, but this one took creepy to a whole new level. The tent seemed to warp and flow around us and the hanging shrunken heads along with bits of, hopefully, feral animals all contributed to the macabre feel of the place.

I could tell Enkii was a bit uneasy as well as her eyes were darting around, occasionally stopping on skulls, limbs, and other fun things, and she was now hugging my arm tight, walking close by my side.

I wasn’t as disturbed considering the amount of shit I was exposed to from an early age, but something did feel… I’m not sure how to say it, but…  _ authentic. _

There was one sorcerer in Lu Shi and her setup was eerily similar to this one, down to the types and sizes of the skulls, so I knew for a fact that this place was the real deal.

Then a realization hit me. We had been walking for easily five minutes now, but from the outside the tent was hardly larger than the mat room at the academy. 

I was brought out of my thoughts by Enkii tugging on my arm. She was looking ahead of her and at a flap in the tent. I moved it out of the way and we walked in only to be horrified by what we saw.

Past the flap was an impossibly long corridor with wooden walls on either side all lined with freakishly realistic puppets, but the most horrific part was the fact that each one of them had a real head mounted just beneath it and each head held perfect likeness to the puppet above it.

“Ok ok ok ok ok, red flag red flag red flag.” Enkii was pulling on my arm and speaking panickedly, “Kai let’s leave, please.”

I was still transfixed by the gory collection that stood before me as we both felt a tap on the shoulder.

I jumped a little and Enkii squeezed my arm with surprising force. I could now feel her heartbeat thumping rapidly inside her body.

“Did you not see the sign?” a voice with a slight Russian accent spoke behind us, “It says ‘customers cannot leave without purchase’.”

We turned around and were met by the smiling face of an aged monkey.

Suddenly he pushed us with strength that shouldn’t be possible for a person of his size into the corridor.

“Come on, just let me tell you your future! It’ll be fun I promise.”

Enkii looked at me with a terrified expression as we began to walk down the grim corridor.

“Who are you exactly?” I asked, somewhat nervously.

“Why I,” he gestured to himself, “am Suruk the mystic.”

“And what is this?” I gestured to the puppets and heads.

“Aah, it is my  _ collection _ . Do you like them? Each one of them was a person who was lucky enough to join my father’s wonderful kingdom.”

_ ‘Ok that’s super creepy’ _

I made sure to get ready to fight just in case this guy tried to recruit us into his “kingdom”.

“Who was your father?”

Suddenly he seemed to tense up a bit, “Now now, Kairos, we don’t have to delve into our lineage. I’m sure  _ you  _ wouldn’t want to discuss your father with a person you didn’t know.”

It was my turn to tense up, and I felt Enkii do the same.

“How do you know my name and my past?” I asked. This guy seemed dangerous.

“What a silly question! Of course I know your name! You entered my shop! Now let us not speak of this any further!” He said rather shortly.

We finally arrived at the end of the corridor where we walked through another flap into a small, round room with a rune covered bowl in the middle. The monkey sat us both down and sat across from us, before crushing up some bones and dropping some feathers into the bowl.

“If you don’t mind, I'm going to need a sample.”

Suddenly he sliced my hand and collected a few drops of blood.

“Ow! Dick…”

He dumped the blood into the bowl along with the other ingredients and tossed a stick that was lit with a purple flame in, causing everything to ignite in a great flurry of shapes and symbols.

I looked on in confusion and intrigue while Enkii continued to cling to my arm. I was pretty worried about her because she was now shivering. I doubt she was ever exposed to much violence or brutality in her life, so seeing a hall full of severed heads must be quite jarring. I just really hoped she didn’t receive any sort of mental damage from the traumatic experience.

Suruk’s eyes suddenly began glowing white and he started to speak.

“Dorzo mal ak. Koordu mai ana, al kaik, muhui hal mort filius min kal mak kumu at al kain moro kal kam abott.”

He spoke in a language I swear I had never heard before, yet somehow I knew exactly what he said.

“ _ Your future is grim indeed. You shall grow powerful, but your power will blind you, and you shall utter in your darkest moment ‘what hath I wrought’ as the void crawls ever closer _ .”

For some fucked up reason, those words hit me harder than any strike I had ever felt. I felt as though my inner being was just dragged through a pit of knives then nailed to a cross.

I looked at Enkii who seemed equally as shocked by the fate set for me.

The monkey’s eyes went back to normal as he dropped some more bones and feathers into the bowl before speaking casually as if he didn’t just tell me my life was going to get more fucked up.

“Now, young lady if you woul-”

I stood up quickly and yanked Enkii up with me to prevent Suruk from slicing her. Enkii was clearly going through a lot at the moment and I wasn’t sure she could handle it if she got a similarly horrible fortune to mine. I definitely couldn’t.

I threw a few coins at the monkey and gave him a glare before scooping Enkii up and exiting the room, covering her eyes as we walked through the macabre corridor. 

Within five or so minutes we had made it out of that gruesome place and back into the sane world.

Instantly Enkii had me locked in a hug and she began crying, I’m guessing out of shock, into my fur. I rubbed her back in an attempt to comfort her. I’m won’t lie and act like that experience didn’t fuck me up a bit, but I was used to feeling horrible, so I was able to manage.

“Let’s go to the inn.” I spoke softly and I could feel her nod a few times.

I picked her up and began walking to the inn.

After a few minutes we had arrived and Enkii had stopped crying though she still seemed very pensieve.

“Do you wanna share a room?” I asked.

She looked at me and nodded, “But what about the rules Shifu set in place?”

I scoffed, “Master shithead isn’t here. We’re both adults and we’re courting, it’ll be fine.”

She nodded and I got the key to our room.

The interior of the room wasn’t anything special. The walls were bamboo and the floors were oak, there was one queen bed right in the center with a small wooden table on either side and a simple bathroom at the end.

It was pretty warm inside, probably due to the warmer climate Shin Shui and the fire lit in the main room of the inn.

As such, I took off my shirt and hopped into the bed, making sure to move all the blankets to one side so Enkii could use them.

Enkii followed my in soon enough, immediately curling herself up in the blankets and hugging close to me.

I laid there unable to sleep for a few hours before finally passing out and accepting the cold embrace of sleep.

**Yay chapter nine is done. This one took me a lot longer than intended because I was having quite a difficult time finding ways to move the chapter forward without making it feel too rushed. Anyways I hope you guys all like the new book cover and the new title. As always make sure to review/favorite/follow and I will try to get chapter ten out as soon as possible.**

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  



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